From the Middle Ages until the advent of the skyscraper, Christian church buildings were often the tallest buildings in the United Kingdom. Indeed, it was not until the building of the BT Tower in London in 1962 that St Paul's Cathedral was no longer the city's tallest structure.
The United Kingdom no longer features as prominently on the list of tallest churches worldwide, but in 1311, Lincoln Cathedral surpassed the Great Pyramid of Giza to become the world's tallest building. Salisbury Cathedral is the present tallest church building in the country, standing at a height of 123 metres (404 feet), and it remains amongst the tallest medieval churches in the world.
Note: This list does not include church buildings which have been reduced in height, either through rebuilding or damage due to disaster. These buildings are incorporated into the list of tallest churches buildings. The height referred to in the table includes weathervanes etc on spires and pinnacles. Actual architectural height may be lower.
| Rank | Name of Church | Height (m) | Height (ft) | Location | Notes | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salisbury Cathedral | 123 | 404 | Salisbury, Wiltshire | Tallest church in the United Kingdom, amongst the tallest medieval churches in the world.[1] | ||
| 2 | St Paul's Cathedral | 111 | 366 | City of London | London's tallest structure from 1710 to 1962; previous tallest in London until Great Fire of London.[2] | ||
| 3 | Liverpool Anglican Cathedral | 101 | 331 | Liverpool | Tallest church in the United Kingdom without a dome or spire, amongst the tallest non-spired churches in the world. Largest church in the UK by area, longest Cathedral in the world.[3] | ||
| 4 | Norwich Cathedral | 96 | 315 | Norwich, Norfolk | [4] | ||
| 5 | Preston, St Walburge | 94 | 309 | Preston, Lancashire | Tallest non-cathedral church in the United Kingdom, tallest Roman Catholic church in the country.[5] | ||
| 6 | Edinburgh, St Mary's Cathedral | 90 | 295 | Edinburgh | The tallest of the three Cathedrals in the UK with three spires. Tallest church in the UK outside of England.[6] | ||
| 7 | Louth, St James | 89 | 293 | Louth, Lincolnshire | Tallest Church of England parish church in the country.[7] Architectural height of 288 feet.[8] | ||
| 8 | (Old) Coventry Cathedral | 88 | 290 | Coventry | Cathedral destroyed in the Coventry Blitz on November 14, 1940; only the tower and spire remain intact. New Cathedral built adjoining old.[9] Architectural height 284 feet.[10] | ||
| 9 | Westminster Cathedral | 87 | 284 | London | Tallest Roman Catholic Cathedral in the country.[11] | ||
| 10 | Grantham, St Wulfram | 87 | 283 | Grantham, Lincolnshire | Architectural height 274 feet[12] [13] | ||
| 11 | Warrington, St Elphin | 86 | 281 | Warrington, Lancashire | [14] | ||
| 12= | Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral | 85 | 278 | Liverpool | [15] | ||
| 12= | Kensington, St Mary Abbots | 85 | 278 | Kensington, Greater London | Tallest parish church in London.[16] | ||
| 14 | Chichester Cathedral | 84 | 277 | Chichester, West Sussex | [17] | ||
| 15 | St Mary Redcliffe | 84 | 274 | Bristol | Commonly misquoted as 292 feet high, which includes the deep foundations and substructure.[18] Architectural height 262 feet. | ||
| 16 | Lincoln Cathedral | 83 | 272 | Lincoln, Lincolnshire | Formerly tallest building the world from 1311 to 1549 when spire collapsed in a storm. Tallest medieval non-spired church in the country.[19] [20] | ||
| 17 | Boston Stump | 81 | 271 | Boston, Lincolnshire | Architectural height 267 feet.[21] | ||
| 18 | Derry, St Eugene's Cathedral | 78 | 256 | Derry | [22] | ||
| 19 | Kilburn, St Augustine | 77 | 253 | Kilburn, Greater London | [23] | ||
| 20 | Lichfield Cathedral | 77 | 252 | Lichfield, Staffordshire | The only medieval cathedral in the United Kingdom with three spires.[24] | ||
| 21 | Truro Cathedral | 76 | 249 | Truro, Cornwall | [25] | ||
| 22 | Wakefield Cathedral | 75 | 247 | Wakefield | Tallest church in Yorkshire.[26] | ||
| 23 | Hulme, St Mary | 73 | 241 | Hulme, Greater Manchester | [27] | ||
| 24= | Lancaster Cathedral | 73 | 240 | Lancaster | |||
| 24= | Salford Cathedral | 73 | 240 | Salford, Greater Manchester | [28] | ||
| 26= | Canterbury Cathedral | 72 | 236 | Canterbury | [29] | ||
| 26= | Newark-on-Trent, St Mary Magdalene | 72 | 236 | Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire | Tallest church in Nottinghamshire. Architectural height 231 feet.[30] | ||
| 26= | Coventry, Holy Trinity | 72 | 236 | Coventry | Tallest surviving church in Coventry.[31] | ||
| 26= | Halifax, All Souls | 72 | 236 | Halifax, West Yorkshire | [32] | ||
| 30 | York Minster | 72 | 235 | York | Largest medieval Cathedral in the United Kingdom.[33] | ||
| 31 | Chesterfield, St Mary and All Saints | 70 | 230 | Chesterfield, Derbyshire | Famous for its twisted spire.[34] | ||
| 32 | Trinity Church, Ossett | 69 | 226 | Ossett, West Yorkshire | [35] | ||
| 33= | Westminster Abbey | 69 | 225 | London | [36] | ||
| 33= | Gloucester Cathedral | 69 | 225 | Gloucester | [37] | ||
| 33= | Glasgow, St Mungo's Cathedral | 69 | 225 | Glasgow | [38] | ||
| 36 | Bath, St John | 68 | 222 | Bath | [39] | ||
| 37 | Derry, St Columb's Cathedral | 67 | 221 | Derry | [40] | ||
| 38= | Leicester Cathedral | 67 | 220 | Leicester | [41] | ||
| 38= | Albion United Reformed Church | 67 | 220 | Ashton-under-Lyne | [42] | ||
| 40 | Durham Cathedral | 66 | 218 | Durham | Largest surviving Romanesque cathedral in the United Kingdom.[43] | ||
| 41 | Ely Cathedral | 66 | 217 | Ely, Cambridgeshire | Known as the 'Ship of the Fens' due to its huge size above the surrounding flat marshes.[44] | ||
| 42= | Bristol, Christ Church Clifton | 65 | 212 | Clifton, Bristol | [45] | ||
| 42= | Derby Cathedral | 65 | 212 | Derby | [46] | ||
| 42= | Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs | 65 | 212 | Cambridge | [47] | ||
| 42= | Ashbourne, St Oswald | 65 | 212 | Ashbourne, Derbyshire | [48] | ||
| 46= | Bottesford, St Mary the Virgin | 64 | 210 | Bottesford, Leicestershire | [49] | ||
| 46= | Armagh, St Patrick's Cathedral (Roman Catholic) | 64 | 210 | Armagh | [50] | ||
| 46= | Dorking, St Martin | 64 | 210 | Dorking, Surrey | |||
| 49 | South Dalton, St Mary | 63 | 208 | South Dalton, East Riding of Yorkshire | [51] | ||
| 50= | Plymouth Cathedral | 62 | 205 | Plymouth | [52] | ||
| 50= | St Mary's Cathedral, Glasgow | 62 | 205 | Glasgow | [53] | ||
| 52= | Worcester Cathedral | 62 | 203 | Worcester | [54] | ||
| 52= | Newcastle Cathedral | 62 | 203 | Newcastle-upon-Tyne | Architectural height 194 feet.[55] | ||
| 54= | Southampton, St Mary | 61 | 202 | Southampton | [56] | ||
| 54= | Bournemouth, St Peter | 61 | 202 | Bournemouth | |||
| 54= | Spitalfields, Christ Church | 61 | 202 | Spitalfields, Greater London | |||
| 54= | Bodelwyddan, Marble Church | 61 | 202 | Bodelwyddan, Denbighshire | |||
| 54= | Birmingham, St Martin | 61 | 202 | Birmingham | [57] | ||
| 59= | St John the Divine, Kennington | 61 | 200 | London | [58] | ||
| 59= | Oxford, University Church of St Mary the Virgin | 61 | 200 | Oxford | Architectural height 191 feet.[59] |