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Eight-thousanders compared

Lhotse vs Cho Oyu

Lhotse (8,516 m, world #4) and Cho Oyu (8,188 m, world #6) compared side by side — height, first ascent and danger. Lhotse is 328 m taller.

LhotseCho Oyu
Height8,516 m8,188 m
World rank#4#6
RangeMahalangur HimalMahalangur Himal
LocationSolukhumbu, KoshiSolukhumbu, Koshi
BorderNepal–China (Tibet) borderNepal–China (Tibet) border
First ascent18 May 195619 October 1954
First climbersFritz Luchsinger & Ernst Reiss (Switzerland)Herbert Tichy, Josef Jöchler (Austria) & Pasang Dawa Lama (Nepal)
Standard routeLhotse Face & Reiss Couloir — shares the Everest route to Camp 3Northwest Ridge from Tibet (the usual commercial route); Nepal-side routes are far harder
Danger≈1,089 summits and 22 deaths by ≈2022 — a fatality rate near 2-3%, modest by 8000er standards (Himalayan Database-derived compilations).Fatality rate ≈1.4% of summits — statistically the safest eight-thousander (Himalayan Database-derived compilations).
Questions

Lhotse vs Cho Oyu, answered

Is Lhotse taller than Cho Oyu?+

Lhotse stands 8,516 m and Cho Oyu 8,188 m, so Lhotse is 328 m taller. Lhotse is the world's 4th-highest mountain and Cho Oyu the 6th.

Which was climbed first, Lhotse or Cho Oyu?+

Lhotse was first summited on 18 May 1956; Cho Oyu on 19 October 1954.

Which is more dangerous, Lhotse or Cho Oyu?+

Lhotse: ≈1,089 summits and 22 deaths by ≈2022 — a fatality rate near 2-3%, modest by 8000er standards (Himalayan Database-derived compilations). Cho Oyu: Fatality rate ≈1.4% of summits — statistically the safest eight-thousander (Himalayan Database-derived compilations).

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Sources & data note

Heights follow the 2020 Nepal–China Everest survey and UIAA figures. Ascent and fatality statistics derive from the Himalayan Database (via Alan Arnette, 2026) and reported press figures; see each peak's profile for full sourcing.