When we first meet Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back, he appears quite aged. We eventually find out that he is quite old and has witnessed the rise and decline of the Jedi.
At what age is Yoda’s species in their physical prime? Read on to find out.
Yoda’s Age and Appearance
One viewpoint on Yoda’s age and appearance is that he was “an anomaly” in that he aged differently from the rest of his species.
As one fan clarifies, Yoda’s species does not seem to experience “a drastic change as they age,” so Yoda could have been different and appeared older sooner.
Yet, others interject in the above discussion that since we have seen Grogu, it may be that Yoda’s species looks “basically the same” throughout their lives, with some variation in height and wrinkles.
That is, some see Grogu as already looking rather older even at his young age.
Based on this compilation, we may see Grogu as perhaps “the same as Yoda but smaller and with big marketable mogwai eyes.”
The Life Cycle of Yoda’s Species
Although Yoda’s species is ancient and mysterious, we can piece together whether Yoda had prime years when he looked younger or was mainly the same throughout his life.
For starters, we know that this species ages slowly and spends the first 50 years in infancy. We also know that Yoda and others like him reach maturity by age 100.
Yoda was about 100 when he started training Jedi, so that could be when he looked his best, but we do not have direct scenes of him in the movies at that age.
We know from Return of the Jedi that Yoda was about 900 years old. As he told Luke, “When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not.”
Fair enough, but Yoda definitely looks older at that point. This would be 4 ABY in the Star Wars timeline. About 26 years earlier, however, Yoda did look to be more in his physical prime.
In 22 BBY, when he battled Count Dooku in Attack of the Clones, Yoda had a wrinkled expression, his cane, and approached slowly.
Yet, when the lightsaber duel commenced, his face appeared a little more youthful as he leaped into the air and effectively countered Dooku’s blows. This may indicate that Yoda aged more rapidly after the downfall of the Jedi.
Because of The Mandalorian, we can also refer to Grogu to assess Yoda’s species. By season 3, Grogu is estimated to be 53, just past infancy.
Grogu does appear younger and we may conclude that Yoda probably did too. We may speculate that at least for the next two or three hundred years, Grogu will attain his top physical appearance, which would mean Yoda would probably have too.
We can also add a reference to Yaddle, the female being from Yoda’s species. Born around 509 BBY, Yaddle still looked youthful and energetic on the Jedi Council in 32 BBY.
We only get a quick glimpse of her in this scene, but her Wookieepedia image confirms it (as does the Tales of the Jedi).
In comparison, Yoda does appear older than Yaddle on the council during the Clone Wars, but not to an extreme degree.
Yoda’s Prime
Up to around age 500 or so, Yoda’s species most likely reached their physical prime and the same goes for Yoda. He even retained a somewhat youthful appearance after age 800, but the stress of war, the fall of the Jedi, and his battle with Palpatine all seem to have taken a toll on him.
Todd Wahlstrom is a creative and analytical freelance writer and life-long Star Wars fan. He has covered such topics as Darth Vader, the Jedi, Boba Fett, and AT-AT Walkers. Todd has published a non-fiction book, holds a Ph.D. in history, and enjoys hiking, running, and reading about science.