The short racer (Platyceps brevis), is a species of snake in the family Colubridae.

The species is endemic to northeastern Africa.

P. brevis is found in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania.

[2] Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Platyceps.

[2] The subspecific name, smithi, is in honor of American physician Arthur Donaldson Smith.