Build a Zoo income rankings: all 51 animals ranked

Frequently asked questions

How are the Build a Zoo income rankings ordered?

All 51 documented animals are sorted by cash per second, highest first. Event animals use their exact event guide figures, four core animals use approximate figures from one money guide and are marked Approximate, and the remaining core animals use arranged estimates interpolated between the published anchors, marked Estimate.

How much should I trust an estimated rank?

Treat an estimate as a planning position, not an exact stat. Each one is anchored to the game's own egg and conveyor ladder and sits inside its rarity band, but the moment a source publishes a real rate for that animal, the published figure replaces the estimate and the rank is recalculated.

Do mutations change the ranking?

Mutations multiply an animal's own income, up to 12x on the food and weather ladder, so a mutated mid table animal can out-earn an unmutated top one in game. The ranking uses base rates so the comparison stays honest.

How these numbers work

Every animal name in this section is named by at least two public sources, or by a dated event guide whose hatch table a second source reproduces. Sixteen of the 51 animals carry published income figures: the 12 event animals carry exact rates from their event guides, and four core animals carry approximate rates from a single money guide, labelled approximate wherever they appear. The other 35 core animals carry arranged estimates, labelled Estimate wherever they appear: because no source publishes core rarities or a core income ladder, each estimate is built from the game's own structure, with the rarity taken from the animal's conveyor pool or its source egg's place on the published egg price ladder, and the income interpolated inside that rarity band between the published anchors, never above a published figure from a higher band. The moment a source publishes a real rate or rarity for one of these animals, the published figure replaces the estimate. Egg prices and conveyor prices are the figures two source lists agree on; where the two lists disagree, both figures are shown and the disagreement is flagged instead of averaged away. The same rule keeps the two conflicting mutation ladders on the mutations page separate. Codes follow the standard two source rule and every status is dated, because Build a Zoo codes carry redemption caps and can expire mid event.

Last updated: November 6, 2026. If you spot a figure that disagrees with your game, tell us on the Tell Us board or in our Discord and we will recheck it.