List of tallest buildings and structures explained

The world's tallest human-made structure is the 828m (2,717feet) Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The building gained the official title of "tallest building in the world" and the tallest self-supported structure at its opening on January 9, 2010. The second-tallest structure in the world is the 679-metre-tall (2,227 ft) Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, while the third-tallest self-supporting structure and the tallest tower in the world is the Tokyo Skytree (634 m or 2,080 ft). The tallest guyed structure is the KRDK-TV mast in North Dakota, U.S. at 2060feet.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, an organization that certifies buildings as the "World's Tallest", recognizes a building only if at least 49% of its height is made up of floor plates containing habitable floor area.^[1] Structures that do not meet this criterion, such as the CN Tower, are defined as "towers".

There are dozens of radio and television broadcasting towers which measure over 600 metres (about 2,000 ft) in height, and only the tallest are recorded in publicly available information sources.

Debate over definition

The assessment of the height of artificial structures has been controversial. Because varying standards have been used by different organizations, the accepted height of these structures or buildings depends on which standards are accepted. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat has changed its definitions over time. Some of the controversy regarding the definitions and assessment of tall structures and buildings has included the following:

• the definition of a structure, a building and a tower
• whether a structure, building or tower under construction should be included in any assessment
• whether a structure, building or tower has to be officially opened before it is assessed
• whether structures built in and rising above water should have their below-water height included in any assessment.
• whether a structure, building or tower that is guyed is assessed in the same category as self-supporting structures.

Within an accepted definition of a building further controversy has included the following factors:

• whether only habitable height of the building is considered
• whether communication towers with observation galleries should be considered "habitable" in this sense
• whether rooftop antennas, viewing platforms or any other architecture that does not form a habitable floor should be included in the assessment
• whether a floor built at a high level of a telecommunications or viewing tower should change the tower's definition to that of a "building"

Tallest structures

See main article: List of tallest structures.

This category does not require the structure to be "officially" open, but does require it to be "topped out".

The tallest artificial structure is Burj Khalifa, a skyscraper in Dubai that reached 829.80NaN0 in height on January 17, 2009.^[2] By April 8, 2008 it had been built higher than the KVLY-TV mast in North Dakota, US.^[3] That September it officially surpassed Poland's 646.38m (2,120.67feet) Warsaw radio mast, which stood from 1974 to 1991, to become the tallest structure ever built. Guyed lattice towers such as these masts had held the world height record since 1954.

The Petronius Platform stands 610m (2,000feet) off the sea floor, leading some, including Guinness World Records 2007, to claim it as the tallest freestanding structure in the world, until surpassed by the Burj Khalifa in 2010. However, it is debated whether underwater height should be counted, in the same manner as height below ground is ignored on buildings. The Troll A platform is 472m (1,549feet), without any part of that height being supported by wires. The tension-leg type of oil platform has even greater below-water heights with several examples more than 1000m (3,000feet) deep. However, these platforms are not considered constant structures as the vast majority of their height is made up of the length of the tendons attaching the floating platforms to the sea floor. Despite this, Guinness World Records 2009 listed the Ursa tension leg platform as the tallest structure in the world with a total height of 1306m (4,285feet). Shell's floating production, storage, and offloading oil platform Turritella in the Gulf of Mexico is a moored platform approximately 2900m (9,500feet) tall.^[4]

Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan, set records in three of the four skyscraper categories at the time it opened in 2004; at the time the Burj Khalifa opened in 2010 it remained the world's tallest inhabited building 509.2m (1,670.6feet) as measured to its architectural height (spire). The height of its roof 449.2m (1,473.8feet) and highest occupied floor 439.2m (1,440.9feet) had been surpassed by the Shanghai World Financial Center with corresponding heights of 487and. Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) was the highest in the final category: the greatest height to top of antenna of any building in the world at 527m (1,729feet).

Burj Khalifa broke the height record in all four categories for completed buildings.

Tallest structure by category

Due to the disagreements over how to measure height and classify structures, engineers have created various definitions for categories of buildings and other structures. One measure includes the absolute height of a building, another includes only spires and other permanent architectural features, but not antennas. The tradition of including the spire on top of a building and not including the antenna dates to the rivalry between the Chrysler Building and 40 Wall Street. A modern-day example is that the antenna on top of Willis Tower is not considered part of its architectural height, while the spires on top of the Petronas Twin Towers are counted.

Note: The following table is a list of the tallest completed structure in each of the structural categories below. For a list of structures by function see the list later in the article. There can only be one structure in each category, unless the tallest is the same for more than one structure in the same category.

Category	Structure	Country	Location	Height (meters)	Height (feet)	Weight (meters)	Weight (feet) --->	Year built	Coordinates
Building^[5] (list)				829.8	2,722	2010	25.1972°N 55.2741°W
Compliant tower				640	2,100	2000	29.1083°N -87.9417°W
Self-supporting tower^[6] (list)			Tokyo	634	2,080	2011
	KVLY-TV mast			629	2,063	1963	47.3422°N -97.2892°W
				604	1,982	2010	23.1089°N 113.3189°W
Clock tower (multi-functional structure)	Abraj Al Bait			601	1,972	2019	21.4189°N 39.8264°W
Fixed steel structure				529	1,736	1988
Moveable object				472	1,549	1996	60.6667°N 43°W
Mast radiator	INS Kattabomman umbrella antenna	India	Vijayanarayanam, Tamil Nadu	471	1545	1990	8.3872°N 77.7517°W
	Landmark 81	Vietnam	Ho Chi Minh City	461.2	1,513	2018
				452	1,483	1998	3.1576°N 101.7113°W 3.1582°N 101.7121°W
Steel building^[7]			Chicago, Illinois	442	1,450	1974	41.8789°N -87.6358°W
Telecommunication, commercial	Milad Tower	Iran	Tehran	435	1,427 ft	2007	35°44′41″N 51°22′31″E
Steel / Concrete building	One World Trade Center	United States	New York, New York	417	1,368	2014	40.7127°N -74.0134°W
Radar	Dimona Radar Facility	Israel		400	1,312	2008	30.9686°N 35.0971°W ; 30.9757°N 35.0987°W
Partially guyed tower	Indosiar TV Tower			395	1,296	2006	-6.1939°N 106.7682°W
Electricity pylon	Jintang-Cezi Overhead Powerline Link			380	1,247	2019	30.0836°N 121.8863°W ; 30.0964°N 121.9095°W
Bridge	Millau Viaduct			342	1,122	2004
Blaw-Knox tower (diamond cantilever tower)				314	1,031	1946
				291	954	1991	39.2003°N -84.5228°W
		China		273.8	898	2020	23.0175°N 113.2917°W
	Haliade-X Prototype			270	886	2019	51.9624°N 4.0117°W
Minaret	Djamaa el Djazaïr			265	870	2019	36.7358°N 3.1381°W
				262	860	2020	24.7547°N 55.365°W
Ferris wheel	Ain Dubai		Bluewater Island Dubai	250	820	2021
Crane (machine)	LR 13000^[8]			248	814	2013	(movable)
Aerial tramway support tower	Cat Hai – Phu Long cable car towers^[9]			214.8	704	2020
Jackup rig	Noble Lloyd Noble^[10]			214	702	2016	(movable)
Cooling tower	Pingshan Power Station			210	689	2020	33.8316°N 116.8277°W
	Cairo Flagpole			201.952^[11]	662.572	2021
Monument	Gateway Arch			192	630	1965
				187	614	1979
	Statue of Unity		Narmada district, Gujarat	182	597	2018	21.838°N 73.7191°W
Masonry tower	Anaconda Smelter Stack			178.3	585	1919
				175	574	1976
				173.7	570	1939
Power station building				172	564	2002	50.9956°N 6.6692°W
Masonry building				167.5	550	1889
Church tower				162	530	1890
Industrial hall	Vehicle Assembly Building			160	525	1966
	Santa Cruz del Valle de los Caídos			152.4	500	1957
	Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 Control Tower			141.3	463.6	2013^[12]
Tallest swing ride	Bollywood Skyflyer^[13]			140	460	2021	25.0833°N 55.3°W
	Kingda Ka			138.98	456	2005
	Great Pyramid of Giza			138.8	455.2	2560 BCE
Drop tower				139	456	2014
Gantry crane	Kockums Crane			138	453	1974
Stupa	Jetavanaramaya			122	400	273–301 CE
Wooden structure				118	387	1935
			Zürich	118	387	2016	47.3896°N 8.5271°W
Gasometer				117.5	386	1929	Currently used as an exhibition and event hall
	Éole^[14]			110	361	1987
Clock tower (single function structure)				100	328	1908	52.4499°N -1.9307°W
Wooden building	Ascent MKE	United States	Milwaukee	87	284	2022
	Sphere at the Venetian Resort	United States	Las Vegas	112	366	2023	36.1206°N -115.1614°W
				82.5	271	1902
				76	249	2008
	Weilburg Pisé House			23.2	76	1828

Tallest destroyed structures by category, not surpassed by existing structures

There are some destroyed architectural structures which were taller than the tallest existing structure of their type. There are also destroyed structures omitted from this list that had been surpassed in height prior to being destroyed.

Category	Structure	Country	Location	Height (metres)	Height (feet)	Coordinates	Remarks
			Gąbin	646.38	2,121		Completed in 1974, collapsed on August 8, 1991
Scientific research tower			Nevada Test Site	462	1,516	36.7806°N -116.2436°W	Completed in 1962, demolished May 23, 2012^[15]
			Tsushima	389	1,276		Completed in 1973, dismantled in 1998
Structure for scientific experiment	Smokey Shot Tower			213	700		Guyed mast, which carried 44 kt yield nuclear bomb "Smokey" (part of operation Plumbbob) on top until its explosion on August 31, 1957
Solar updraft tower	Manzanares Solar Chimney		Manzanares	195	640		Completed in 1982, the tower's guy-wires were not protected against corrosion and failed due to rust and storm winds causing the tower to collapse in 1989. Small-scale experimental model of a solar draft tower, newer proposals if built could become the tallest structure on earth.
Wooden structure			Mühlacker	190	623		Completed in 1934, destroyed on April 6, 1945, by the Germans to prevent usage by the Allies, replaced by mast radiator
			Turin	167.5	549.5		Spire destroyed by a tornado in 1953 (rebuilt since then)
			Lincoln	160	524		Completed in 1311, spire blown off in 1549
	Arecibo Telescope			150	492		Completed in 1963, collapsed on December 1, 2020
Gasometer	Gasometer Zeche Nordstern		Gelsenkirchen	147	482		Completed in 1938, damaged at an air raid on May 13, 1940 in such a manner, that it was not usable any more and had to be demolished.
			Frankfurt	120	394		Constructed in 1961, demolished in 2013

Tallest structure by function

Category	Structure	Country	Location	Architectural top
				(metres)	(feet)
Mixed-use*	Burj Khalifa			830	2,722
Industrial	Petronius (oil platform)	United States	Gulf of Mexico	640	2,100
Office	Ping An Finance Center	China	Shenzhen	555	1,821
	Central Park Tower	United States	New York City	472.4	1,550
Military			Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu	471	1,545
Hotel	Gevora Hotel^[16]			356.3	1,169
Scientific research tower				325^[17]	1,066
	Moscow State University		Moscow	240	787
Religious				265	870
	Outpatient Center, Houston Methodist Hospital			156.05	511.8
Air cleaning	Xi'an air purification tower (HSALSCS)^[18] ^[19]

* "Mixed-use" is defined as having three or more real estate uses (such as retail, office, hotel, etc.) that are physically and functionally integrated in a single property and are mutually supporting.^[20]

Tallest buildings

See main article: List of tallest buildings.

Up until the late 1990s, the definition of "tallest building" was not altogether clear. It was generally understood to be the height of the building to the top of its architectural elements including spires, but not including "temporary" structures (such as antennas or flagpoles), which could be added or changed relatively easily without requiring major changes to the building's design. Other criteria for height measurement generally were not considered, which occasionally caused some controversy.

One historic case involved the building now famous for the Times Square Ball. Known as One Times Square (at 1475 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan), it was the headquarters for The New York Times, which gave Times Square its name. Completed in 1905, it reached a height of 364abbr=offNaNabbr=off to its roof, or 420abbr=offNaNabbr=off including its rooftop flagpole, which the Times hoped would give it a record high status but because a flagpole is not an integral architectural part of a building, One Times Square was not generally considered to be taller than the 390feet Park Row Building in Lower Manhattan, which was therefore still New York's tallest.^[21]

A bigger controversy was the rivalry between two New York City skyscrapers built in the Roaring Twenties—the Chrysler Building and 40 Wall Street. The latter was 927abbr=offNaNabbr=off tall, had a shorter pinnacle, and had a much higher top occupied floor (the second category in the 1996 criteria for tallest building).^[22] In contrast, the Chrysler Building employed a very long 125feet spire secretly assembled inside the building to claim the title of world's tallest building with a total height of 1048feet, despite having a lower top occupied floor and a shorter height when both buildings' spires are not counted in their heights.^[23] Although the architects of record for 40 Wall were H. Craig Severance and Yasuo Matsui, the firm of Shreve & Lamb (who also designed the Empire State Building) served as consulting architects. They wrote a newspaper article claiming that 40 Wall was actually the tallest, since it contained the world's highest usable floor. They pointed out that the observation deck of 40 Wall was nearly 100feet higher than the top floor of the Chrysler, whose surpassing spire was strictly ornamental and essentially inaccessible.^[24] Despite the protest, the Chrysler Building was generally accepted as the tallest building in the world for almost a year, until it was surpassed by the Empire State Building's 1250abbr=offNaNabbr=off in 1931.

That was in turn surpassed by the 1368feet Twin Towers of New York's original World Trade Center in 1972, which were in turn surpassed by the Sears Tower in Chicago in 1974. Now called the Willis Tower since 2009, it was 1451abbr=offNaNabbr=off to its flat rooftop, or 1518abbr=offNaNabbr=off including its original antennas.^[25] But in 1978 One World Trade Center (commonly known as the North Tower) attained a taller absolute height when it added its 360feet new broadcasting antenna, for a total height of 1728abbr=offNaNabbr=off. The WTC North Tower maintained this height record (including its antenna) from 1978 until 2000, when the owners of the Willis Tower extended its broadcasting antennae for a total height of 1729abbr=offNaNabbr=off.^[25] Thus the status of the Willis Tower as the "totally" tallest was restored in the face of a new threat looming in the Far East—the "Siamese Twins."

A major controversy erupted upon completion of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1998. These Twin Towers, at 1483abbr=offNaNabbr=off, had a higher architectural height (spires, not antennas), but a lower absolute pinnacle height and a lower top occupied floor than the Willis Tower in Chicago. Counting buildings as structures with floors throughout, and with antenna masts excluded, the Willis was still considered the tallest at that time. Excluding their spires, which are 9abbr=offNaNabbr=off higher than the flat roof of Willis, the Petronas Towers are not taller than Willis. At their convention in Chicago, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) found the Willis Tower (without its antennas) to be the third-tallest building, and the Petronas Towers (with their spires) to be the world's two tallest buildings.

Responding to the ensuing controversy, the CTBUH then revised their criteria and defined four categories in which the world's tallest building can be measured,^[26] retaining the old criterion of height to architectural top, and adding three new categories:^[21]

1. Height to Architectural Top (including spires and pinnacles, but not antennas, masts or flagpoles). This measurement is the most widely used and is used to define the rankings of the 100 Tallest Buildings in the World.
2. Highest Occupied Floor
3. Height to Top of Roof (omitted from criteria from November 2009 onwards)^[27]
4. Height to Tip

The height-to-roof criterion was discontinued because relatively few modern tall buildings possess flat rooftops, making this criterion difficult to determine and measure.^[28] The CTBUH has further clarified their definitions of building height, including specific criteria concerning subbasements and ground level entrances (height measured from lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance rather than from a previously undefined "main entrance"), building completion (must be topped out both structurally and architecturally, fully clad, and able to be occupied), condition of the highest occupied floor (must be continuously used by people living or working and be conditioned, thus including observation decks, but not mechanical floors) and other aspects of tall buildings.^{[28] [29]}

The height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance. At the time, the Willis Tower held first place in the second and third categories, the Petronas Towers held the first category, and the original WTC North Tower held the fourth (height to tip) category with its antenna.^[21] In 2000, however, a new antenna mast was placed on the Willis Tower, giving it the record in the fourth category. On April 20, 2004, the 101-story Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan, was completed, taking the world record for the first three categories. On July 21, 2007, it was announced that Burj Khalifa in Dubai, UAE, had surpassed Taipei 101. Since its completion in early 2010, Burj Khalifa leads in all categories (the first building to do so) with its spire height of 2722abbr=offNaNabbr=off.

Before Burj Khalifa was completed, Willis Tower led in the height-to-tip category with 1729abbr=offNaNabbr=off after its antenna was extended in 2000, making Willis Tower slightly taller height-to-tip than the World Trade Center (WTC) North Tower's antenna that measured 1728abbr=offNaNabbr=off. After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the WTC became the world's tallest two buildings to be destroyed or demolished. They took that distinction from the Singer Building, which stood 612abbr=offNaNabbr=off tall until the late 1960s where One Liberty Plaza now stands right across Church Street from the WTC site.

A different superlative for skyscrapers is their number of floors. The original World Trade Center set that record at 110 in the early 1970s, and this was not surpassed until the Burj Khalifa opened in 2010.

Tall freestanding structures such as the CN Tower, the Ostankino Tower and the Oriental Pearl Tower are excluded from these categories because they are not "habitable buildings", which are defined as frame structures made with floors and walls throughout.^[1]

History of record holders in each CTBUH category

Date (event)		Architectural top	Highest occupied floor	Roof	Tip
2010: Burj Khalifa completed	829M	167		Burj Khalifa
2009: CTBUH omits Height to Roof category	Taipei 101	Shanghai World Financial Center		Willis Tower
2008: Shanghai World Financial Center completed	Taipei 101	Shanghai World Financial Center	Shanghai World Financial Center	Willis Tower
2003: Taipei 101 completed	Taipei 101	Taipei 101	Taipei 101	Willis Tower
2000: Willis Tower antenna extension	Petronas Towers	Willis Tower	Willis Tower	Willis Tower
1998: Petronas Towers completed	Petronas Towers	Willis Tower	Willis Tower	World Trade Center
1996: CTBUH defines categories	Willis Tower	Willis Tower	Willis Tower	World Trade Center

Tallest freestanding structures on land

See main article: List of tallest freestanding structures. Freestanding structures must not be supported by guy wires, the sea or other types of support. It therefore does not include guyed masts, partially guyed towers and drilling platforms but does include towers, skyscrapers (pinnacle height) and chimneys. (See also history of tallest skyscrapers.)

The world's tallest freestanding structure on land is defined as the tallest self-supporting artificial structure that stands above ground. This definition is different from that of world's tallest building or world's tallest structure based on the percentage of the structure that is occupied and whether or not it is self-supporting or supported by exterior cables. Likewise, this definition does not count structures that are built underground or on the seabed, such as the Petronius Platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Visit world's tallest structure by category for a list of various other definitions.

The tallest freestanding structure on land is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The building surpassed the height of the previous record holder, the 553.3m (1,815.3feet) CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario, on September 12, 2007. It was completed in 2010, with final height of 829.80NaN0.

History

The following is a list of structures that have held the title as the tallest freestanding structure on land.

Tallest known historical structures

Record from	Record held (years)	Name and location	Constructed	Height (metres)	Height (feet)	Coordinates	Notes
c. 9500 BC^[30]	1,500	Göbekli Tepe, Anatolia	c. 9500 BC	5-6	18		Possibly one of the earliest known temples.
c. 8000 BC	4,000	Tower of Jericho, West Bank, Palestine	c. 8000 BC	8.5	27.9	31.872°N 35.444°W
c. 4000 BC	1,350	Anu Ziggurat, Uruk	c. 4000 BC	13	40
c. 2650 BC	40	Pyramid of Djoser, Egypt	c. 2650 BC	62.5	205
c. 2610 BC	5	Meidum Pyramid in Egypt	c. 2610 BC	91.65	301		Shortly after completion Meidum Pyramid collapsed due to bad design/instability and is now 65m (213feet).
c. 2605 BC	5	Bent Pyramid in Egypt	c. 2605 BC	104.71	343.5		Angle of slope decreased during construction to avoid collapse.
c. 2600 BC	30	Red Pyramid of Sneferu, Egypt	c. 2600 BC	105	344.5
c. 2570 BC	3,881	Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt	c. 2570 BC	146.6	481		By 1647, the Great Pyramid had eroded to a height of approximately 139m (456feet).
1311	237	Lincoln Cathedral in England	1092–1311	160	525		The central spire was destroyed in a storm in 1549. While the reputed height of 525feet is accepted by most sources,^[31] ^[32] ^[33] ^[34] ^[35] ^[36] others consider it doubtful^[37]
1549	24	St. Mary's Church in Stralsund, Germany	1384–1478	151	495		(See also resumption 1573–1647). Today its church tower has a dome and stands at 104abbr=onNaNabbr=on tall.
1573	94 (20+74)	St. Mary's Church in Stralsund, Germany	1384–1478	151	495		(See also 1549–1569). The church tower's spire burnt down after a lightning strike in 1647. Today the tower has a dome and stands at a height of 104m (341feet).
1647	227	Strasbourg Cathedral in France	1439	142	466		By 1647, the Great Pyramid had eroded to a height of approximately 139m (456feet) hence Strasbourg Cathedral was higher.
1874	2	St. Nikolai in Hamburg, Germany	1846–1874	147	483
1876	4	Cathédrale Notre Dame in Rouen, France	1202–1876	151	495
1880	4	Cologne Cathedral in Germany	1248–1880	157.38	515	;
1884	5	Washington Monument in Washington D.C., United States	1884	169.29	555		The world's tallest all-stone structure, as well as the tallest obelisk-form structure.
1889	42	Eiffel Tower in Paris, France	1887–1889	312	1,024		First structure to exceed 300 metres in height. The addition of a telecommunications tower in the 1950s brought the overall height to 330m (1,080feet).
1930	1	Chrysler Building in New York, United States	1928–1930	319	1,046
1931	36	Empire State Building in New York, United States	1930–1931	381	1,250		First building with 100+ stories. The addition of a pinnacle and antennas later increased its overall height to 448.7m (1,472.1feet). This was subsequently lowered to 443.1m (1,453.7feet).
1967	8	Ostankino Tower in Moscow, Soviet Union	1963–1967	540	1,762		Remains the tallest in Europe. Fire in 2000 led to extensive renovation.
1975	32	CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario, Canada	1973–1976	553.33	1,815.39	43.6426°N -79.3871°W	The tallest in the Western Hemisphere.
2007	present	Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates	2004–2009	829.8	2,722	25.1972°N 55.2741°W	Holder of world's tallest freestanding structure. Topped out at 829.80NaN0 in 2009.

Notable mentions include the Pharos (lighthouse) of Alexandria, built in the third century BC and estimated between 115–. It was the world's tallest non-pyramidal structure for many centuries. Another notable mention includes the Jetavanaramaya stupa in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, which was built in the third century, and was similarly tall at 122m (400feet). These were both the world's tallest or second-tallest non-pyramidal structure for over a thousand years.

The tallest secular building between the collapse of the Pharos and the erection of the Washington Monument may have been the Torre del Mangia in Siena, Italy, which is 102m (335feet) tall, and was constructed in the first half of the fourteenth century, and the 97adj=midNaNadj=mid Torre degli Asinelli in Bologna, Italy, built between 1109 and 1119.

World's highest observation deck

See main article: Observation deck. Timeline of development of world's highest observation deck since inauguration of Eiffel Tower.

Record from	Record held (years)	Name and location	Constructed	Height above ground		Notes
				m	ft
1889	42	Eiffel Tower, Paris	1889	275	902	Two lower observation decks at 57and.
1931	42	Empire State Building, New York City	1931	369^[38]	1,250	On the 102nd floor – a second observation deck is located on the 86th floor at 320m (1,050feet).
1973	1	World Trade Center, New York City	1973	399.4	1,310	Indoor observatory on the 107th floor of South Tower opened on April 4, 1973. Destroyed on September 11, 2001
1974	1	Willis Tower, Chicago	1974	412.4	1,353	103rd floor Skydeck opened on June 22, 1974
1975	1	World Trade Center, New York City	1973	419.7	1,377	Outdoor observatory on the South Tower rooftop opened on December 15, 1975. Destroyed on September 11, 2001
1976	32	CN Tower, Toronto	1976	446.5	1,464.9	Two further observation decks at 342and.
2008	3	Shanghai World Financial Center, Shanghai	2008	474	1,555	Two further observation decks at 423and.
2011	3	Canton Tower, Guangzhou	2011	488	1,601	The rooftop outdoor observation deck opened in December 2011. There are also several other indoor observation decks in the tower, the highest at 433.2m (1,421.3feet).
2014	2	Burj Khalifa, Dubai	2010	555	1,821	Opened on October 15, 2014 on the 148th floor. There is another observation deck at 452.1m (1,483.3feet) on the 124th floor, which has been open since the building was opened to the public.
2015	present	Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China	2015	562	1,841	Opened on February 2, 2015.

Higher observation decks have existed on mountain tops or cliffs, rather than on tall structures. The Grand Canyon Skywalk, constructed in 2007, protrudes 70abbr=onNaNabbr=on over the west rim of the Grand Canyon and is approximately 1100m (3,600feet) above the Colorado River, making it the highest of these types of structures.

Timeline of guyed structures on land

As most of the tallest structures are guyed masts, here is a timeline of world's tallest guyed masts, since the beginning of radio technology.

As many large guyed masts were destroyed at the end of World War II, the dates for the years between 1945 and 1950 may be incorrect. If Wusung Radio Tower survived World War II, it was the tallest guyed structure shortly after World War II.

Record from	Record held (years)	Name and location	Constructed	Height		Coordinates	Notes
				m	ft
1913	7	Central mast of Eilvese transmitter, Eilvese, Germany	1913	250	820		Mast was divided in 145 m by an insulator, demolished in 1931
1920	3	Central masts of Nauen Transmitter Station, Nauen, Germany	1920	260	853		2 masts, demolished in 1946
1923	10	Masts of Ruiselede transmitter, Ruiselede, Belgium	1923	287	942	?	8 masts, destroyed in 1940
1933	6	Lakihegy Tower, Lakihegy, Hungary	1933	314	1,031	47.3732°N 19.0048°W	Blaw-Knox Tower, insulated against ground, destroyed in 1945; rebuilt
1939	7	Deutschlandsender Herzberg/Elster, Herzberg (Elster), Germany	1939	335	1,099		Insulated against ground, dismantled 1946/1947
1946	2	Lakihegy Tower, Lakihegy, Hungary	1946	314	1,031	47.3732°N 19.0048°W	Blaw-Knox Tower, Insulated against ground, rebuilt after destruction in 1945
1948	1	WIVB-TV Tower, Colden, New York, U.S.	1948	321.9	1,056	42.6592°N -78.6261°W
1949	1	Longwave transmitter Raszyn, Raszyn, Poland	1949	335	1,099		Insulated against ground
1950	4	Forestport Tower, Forestport, New York, U.S.	1950	371.25	1,218	43.445°N -75.086°W	Insulated against ground, demolished
1954	2	Griffin Television Tower Oklahoma (AKA KWTV Transmission Tower), Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.	1954	480.5	1,576	35.5496°N -97.4973°W
1956	3	KOBR-TV Tower, Caprock, New Mexico, U.S.	1956	490.7	1,610	33.3754°N -103.7706°W	Collapsed in 1960; rebuilt
1959	1	WGME TV Tower, Raymond, Maine, U.S.	1959	495	1,624	43.9246°N -70.4908°W
1960	2	KFVS TV Mast, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, U.S.	1960	511.1	1,677	37.429°N -89.5038°W
1962	1	WTVM/WRBL-TV & WVRK-FM Tower, Cusseta, Georgia, U.S.	1962	533	1,749	32.3236°N -84.7792°W
1963	0	WIMZ-FM-Tower, Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.	1963	534.01	1,752	36.1349°N -83.7244°W
1963	11	KVLY-TV mast, Blanchard, North Dakota, U.S.	1963	606.0	1,988	47.3422°N -97.2892°W	75 foot analog antenna was removed from the top of the structure in 2018 in digital repack construction
1974	17	Warsaw Radio Mast, Gąbin, Poland	1974	646.4	2,121		Mast radiator insulated against ground, collapsed in 1991
2018	present	KRDK-TV mast, Galesburg, North Dakota, U.S.	1997	628.0	2,060	47.2792°N -97.3405°W

Tallest towers

See main article: List of tallest towers. Towers include observation towers, monuments and other structures not generally considered to be "habitable buildings", they are meant for "regular access by humans, but not for living in or office work, and are self-supporting or freestanding, which means no guy-wires for support", meaning it excludes from this list of continuously habitable buildings and skyscrapers as well as radio and TV masts.

Bridge towers or pylons, chimneys, transmission towers, and most large statues allow human access for maintenance, but not as part of their normal operation, and are therefore not considered to be towers.

The Tokyo Skytree, completed in February 2012, is 634m (2,080feet), making it the tallest tower, and second-tallest freestanding structure in the world.^{[39] [40] [41]}

History of tallest towers

The following is a list of structures that have historically held the title as the tallest towers in the world.

Tallest historical towers

From	To	Tower	Location	Pinnacle height
280 BC	1180 AD			122 m
1180	1240	Malmesbury Abbey Tower		131.3 m
1240	1311			150 m
1311	1549			159.7 m
1549	1569			151 m
1569	1573	St. Pierre's Cathedral		153 m
1573	1647			151 m
1647	1874			142 m
1874	1876			147 m
1876	1880			151 m
1880	1889			157.38 m
1889	1958		Paris, France	312.3 m
1958	1967			332.6 m
1967	1975			540.1 m
1975	2010		Toronto, Ontario, Canada	553.33 m
2010	2011			600 m
2011	present			634 m

Tallest structures, freestanding structures, and buildings

The list categories are:

• The structures (supported) list uses pinnacle height and includes architectural structures of any type that might use some external support constructions like cables and are fully built in air. Only the three tallest are listed, as more than fifty US TV masts have stated heights of 600m–610mm (2,000feet–2,000feetm).
• The structures (media supported) list uses pinnacle height and includes architectural structures of any type that are not totally built in the air but are using support from other, denser media like salt water. All structures greater than 500m (1,600feet) are listed.
• The freestanding structures list uses pinnacle height and includes structures over 500m (1,600feet) that do not use guy-wires or other external supports. This means truly free standing on its own or, in similar sense, non-supported structures.
• The building list uses architectural height (excluding antennas) and includes only buildings, defined as consisting of habitable floors. Both of these follow CTBUH guidelines. All supertall buildings (450 m and higher) are listed.

Notes:

• Eight buildings appear on the freestanding structures category list with heights different from another category. This is due to the different measurement specifications of those lists.
• Only current heights and, where reasonable, target heights are listed. Historical heights of structures that no longer exist, for example, for having collapsed, are excluded.

	Rank		Name and location		Year completed		Architectural top^[42] (metres)		Architectural top (feet)		Floors
Structures (supported) See main article: List of tallest structures.
1	KRDK-TV mast, Galesburg, North Dakota United States	1966	627.8m (2,059.7feet)	–
2	KXTV/KOVR Tower, Walnut Grove, California, United States	2000	624.5m (2,048.9feet)	–
3	KCAU-TV Tower, Hinton, Iowa, United States	1965	609.6m (2,000feet)	–
Structures (media supported)
1	Petronius Platform, Gulf of Mexico	2000	640m (2,100feet)	–
2	Baldpate Platform, Gulf of Mexico	1998	579.7m (1,901.9feet)	–
3	Bullwinkle Platform, Gulf of Mexico	1989	529m (1,736feet)	–
Freestanding structures See main article: List of tallest freestanding structures. <						-- Pinnacle heights -->
1	Burj Khalifa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	2009	829.80NaN0	163
2	Tokyo Skytree, Tokyo, Japan	2012	6340NaN0	–
3	Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China	2015	6320NaN0	128
4	Abraj Al Bait, Makkah, Saudi Arabia	2011	6010NaN0	120
5	Canton Tower, Guangzhou, China	2010	6000NaN0	–
6	Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen, China	2016	5990NaN0	115
7	Goldin Finance 117, Tianjin, China	2020	596.60NaN0	128
8	Lotte World Tower, Seoul, South Korea	2016	555.70NaN0	123
9	CN Tower, Toronto, Ontario, Canada	1976	553.3m (1,815.3feet)	–
10	One World Trade Center, New York City, U.S.	2013	546.2m (1,792feet)	104
11	Ostankino Tower, Moscow, Russia	1967	540m (1,770feet)	–
12	Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre, Guangzhou, China	2016	5300NaN0	111
12	Tianjin CTF Finance Centre, Tianjin, China	2018	5300NaN0	98
14	China Zun, Beijing, China	2018	5280NaN0	108
15	Willis Tower, Chicago, United States	1974	527m (1,729feet)	108
Buildings See main article: List of tallest buildings. <						-- Architectural heights -->
1	Burj Khalifa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	2010	8280NaN0	163
2	Shanghai Tower, Shanghai, China	2015	6320NaN0	128
3	Abraj Al Bait, Mecca, Saudi Arabia	2011	6010NaN0	120
4	Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen, China	2016	5990NaN0	115
5	Goldin Finance 117, Tianjin, China	2020	596.60NaN0	128
6	Lotte World Tower, Seoul, South Korea	2016	554.50NaN0	123
7	One World Trade Center, New York City, U.S.	2013	541.3m (1,775.9feet)	104
8	Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre, Guangzhou, China	2016	5300NaN0	111
9	Tianjin CTF Finance Centre, Tianjin, China	2018	5300NaN0	98
10	China Zun, Beijing, China	2018	5280NaN0	108
11	Taipei 101, Taipei, Taiwan	2004	509m (1,670feet)	101
12	Shanghai World Financial Center, Shanghai, China	2008	492m (1,614feet)	101
15	Central Park Tower, New York City, U.S.	2021	472m (1,549feet)	98
14	International Commerce Centre, Hong Kong	2010	484m (1,588feet)	118
15	Lakhta Center, Saint Petersburg, Russia	2018	462m (1,516feet)	86

Source: Emporis

Tallest structures through time

Structure	Coordinates	Location	Country/Region	Year built	Height (meters)	Height (feet)
Burj Khalifa	25.1972°N 55.2741°W	Dubai	United Arab Emirates	2010	829.8	2,722
Warsaw Radio Mast	52.3677°N 19.8024°W	Gąbin	Poland	1974	646.38	2,121
Smokey Shot Tower	37.1871°N -116.0689°W	Nevada Test Site	United States	1870	213	700
Lincoln Cathedral	53.2342°N -0.5363°W	Lincolnshire	United Kingdom	1311	160	524
Cologne Cathedral	50.9411°N 6.9571°W 50.9414°N 6.9572°W	Cologne	Germany	1248	157.38	515
Beauvais Cathedral	49.4303°N 2.0953°W		France	1225	153	502
Cathédrale Notre Dame	49.4402°N 1.095°W	Rouen	France	1202	151	495
Great Pyramid of Giza	29.9791°N 31.1342°W	Giza	Egypt	2560 BCE	138.8	455.2
Red Pyramid of Sneferu	29.8087°N 31.2062°W		Egypt		105	344
Bent Pyramid	29.7903°N 31.2092°W		Egypt		104.71	344
Meidum Pyramid	29.3881°N 31.1569°W		Egypt		91.65	301
Pyramid of Djoser	29.8713°N 31.2166°W		Egypt		62.5	205
Anu Ziggurat	West Bank	Uruk	Iraq		13	40
Tower of Jericho	31.872°N 35.444°W	West Bank	Palestine		8.5	27.9
Göbekli Tepe	37.2231°N 38.9225°W	Anatolia	Turkey		5-6	18

See also

• List of elevator test towers
• List of hyperboloid structures
• List of tallest bridges
• List of tallest church buildings
• List of tallest chimneys
• List of tallest clock towers
• List of tallest cooling towers
• List of tallest dams
• List of tallest educational buildings
• List of tallest freestanding steel structures
• List of tallest hospitals
• List of tallest hotels
• List of tallest minarets
• List of tallest oil platforms
• List of tallest residential buildings
• List of tallest statues
• List of tallest structures built before the 20th century
• List of tallest wooden buildings
• Tallest industrial buildings

External links

• Tallest Buildings in the Islamic World (2017)
• Collection of many record holders on Skyscraperpage
• tallestbuildingintheworld.net
• A map visualization of each country's tallest building
• The highest abandoned skyscraper in the world

Notes and References

1. Web site: CTBUH Criteria for Defining and Measuring Tall Buildings. . August 19, 2008.
2. Web site: Burj Dubai all set for 09/09/09 soft opening . Emirates Business24/7 . January 17, 2009.
3. Burj Dubai surpasses KVLY-TV mast to become the world's tallest man-made structure. Emaar. May 28, 2008.
4. Web site: 2016-09-06 . Shell starts up Stones in the ultra-deepwater Gulf of Mexico . 2024-07-10 . Offshore . en.
5. Web site: CTBUH Criteria for Defining and Measuring Tall Buildings. ctbuh. www.ctbuh.org. en-US. 2018-11-09.
6. Web site: CTBUH Criteria for Defining and Measuring Tall Buildings. ctbuh. www.ctbuh.org. en-GB. 2018-11-09.
7. Web site: World's Tallest Steel Buildings. August 18, 2010.
8. Web site: Liebherr LR13000 with lattice boom: The world's tallest crawler crane. August 2013.
9. Web site: 2020-06-06 . Doppelmayr – Garaventa And Sun Group Build Another High-capacity Island Link . 2022-02-27 . Snowindustrynews.com.
10. Web site: Ten oil industry world records you maybe haven't heard of – equinor.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20200815054550/https://www.equinor.com/en/magazine/industry-world-records.html . August 15, 2020 . August 2, 2020.
11. Web site: Tallest flagpole. 2021-12-31. Guinness World Records. December 26, 2021 . en-gb.
12. Web site: Tower West. May 5, 2015.
13. Web site: Bollywood Skyflyer: World's tallest swing ride now open in Dubai's Bollywood Parks CNN Travel . Cnn.com . February 3, 2021. 2022-02-27.
14. Web site: Éole, Cap-Chat . SkyscraperPage.com . 2022-02-27.
15. Web site: Tallest structure in West demolished. McCord. Keith. May 23, 2012. KSL-TV. September 29, 2012. Salt Lake City, UT.
16. Web site: Tallest hotel. February 9, 2018 .
17. News: Brazil builds giant Amazon observation tower. BBC News. September 14, 2014.
18. Web site: This skyscraper-sized air purifier is the world's tallest. NBC News. March 21, 2018.
19. Web site: China has built the 'world's largest air purifier' to battle smog. February 19, 2018.
20. Schwanke D. et al. (2003). Mixed-use Development Handbook, 2nd edition. Washington: Urban Land Institute
21. Web site: History of Measuring Tall Buildings. May 5, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20120410072709/http://www.ctbuh.org/AboutCTBUH/History/MeasuringTall/tabid/1320/language/en-US/Default.aspx. April 10, 2012. dead.
22. Web site: The History of Measuring Tall Buildings . Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat . May 3, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120410072709/http://www.ctbuh.org/AboutCTBUH/History/MeasuringTall/tabid/1320/language/en-US/Default.aspx . April 10, 2012 . dead.
23. News: Denies Altering Plans for Tallest Building; Starrett Says Height of Bank of Manhattan Structure Was Not Increased to Beat Chrysler.. October 20, 1929. The New York Times. April 26, 2020. en-US. 0362-4331.
24. Binders, George (August 2006). 101 of the World's Tallest Buildings. p. 102.
25. Web site: Willis Tower, Chicago – SkyscraperPage.com . May 5, 2015 . SkyscraperPage.com.
26. Web site: CTBUH Criteria for Defining and Measuring Tall Buildings. May 5, 2015.
27. News: CTBUH changes height criteria, Burj Khalifa height increases. November 17, 2009. Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. November 18, 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20180105123138/http://www.ctbuh.org/NewsMedia/PR_091117_ChangeHeightCriteria/tabid/1273/language/en-US/Default.aspx. January 5, 2018. dead.
28. Web site: CTBUH Changes Height Criteria. May 5, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20180105123138/http://www.ctbuh.org/NewsMedia/PR_091117_ChangeHeightCriteria/tabid/1273/language/en-US/Default.aspx. January 5, 2018. dead.
29. Web site: CTBUH Criteria for Defining and Measuring Tall Buildings . Ctbuh.org . 2018-09-20.
30. Clare . Lee . Göbekli Tepe, Turkey. A brief summary of research at a new World Heritage Site (2015–2019) . E-Forschungsberichte . 12 October 2020 . § 1–13–§ 1–13 . 10.34780/efb.v0i2.1012 . de.
31. Haughton, Brian (2007), Hidden History: Lost Civilizations, Secret Knowledge, and Ancient Mysteries, p. 167
32. Michael Woods, Mary B. Woods (2009), Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, p. 41
33. Web site: Lincoln Cathedral. May 5, 2015.
34. Darwin Porter, Danforth Prince (2010), Frommer's England 2010, p. 588
35. Mary Jane Taber (1905), The cathedrals of England: an account of some of their distinguishing characteristics, p. 100
36. Web site: 2010-01-07 . A Brief History of the World's Tallest Buildings – Photo Essays – TIME . 2023-06-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100107044454/http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1950812_2018362,00.html . January 7, 2010 .
37. Book: Kendrick, A. F. . The Cathedral Church of Lincoln: A History and Description of its Fabric and a List of the Bishops . George Bell & Sons . 1902 . 978-1-178-03666-4 . London . 60 . 2: The Central Tower . The tall spire of timber, covered with lead, which originally crowned this tower reached an altitude, it is said, of 525 feet; but this is doubtful. This spire was blown down during a tempest in January 1547–1548..
38. Web site: The Empire State Building. December 23, 2007. Wired New York. August 22, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120822163039/http://wirednewyork.com/landmarks/esb/. dead.
39. Web site: Tokyo Sky Tree construction ends: World's tallest tower prepares to open . . 1 March 2012 . 1 March 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120301172328/http://www.cnngo.com/tokyo/visit/best-japan/tokyo-sky-tree-completes-worlds-tallest-tower-prepares-open-292638 . March 1, 2012 . dead .
40. News: Tokyo unveils world's tallest communications tower . . Danielle Demetriou . 1 March 2012 . 1 March 2012.
41. Web site: Tokyo Skytree website. Tobu Railway Co., Ltd. & Tobu Tower Skytree Co., Ltd.. ja. 2011-03-08.
42. height for inhabited buildings with floors; does not include TV towers and antennas