At 527.7 meters in height, the 108-story Citic Tower office building in Beijing tops the list of 143 tall buildings (200 meters or greater in height) that were completed in 2018. The number was slightly off last year's pace, when 147 tall projects opened worldwide, but 2018 saw a record-high "supertall" skyscrapers open their doors. Eighteen towers measuring at least 300 meters in height opened this year, up from the previous record of 15 in 2017, according to a new report from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.
China continues to dominate the tall buildings landscape. The nation is home to 11 of the 18 new supertalls and 88 of the 143 new tall buildings worldwide. At 61.5% of the global total, this is a record for China, up from 54.4% in 2017.
The U.S. is home to three of the new supertalls (and 13 tall building completions overall):
- Comcast Technology Center, Philadelphia: 341.7 meters, 59 floors, hotel/office
- 3 World Trade Center, New York City: 328.9 meters, 69 floors, office
- Salesforce Tower, San Francisco: 326.1 meters, 61 floors, office
SEE ALSO: The world’s tallest buildings with dampers
Rounding out the top five are United Arab Emirates (10 completions, one supertall), Indonesia (five completions, zero supertall), and Malaysia (seven completions, one supertall).
More findings from the "CTBUH Year in Review: Tall Trends of 2018" report:
- The total number of 200-meter-and-higher buildings in the world is now 1,478, a 141% increase from 614, in 2010.
- The total number of 300-meter-and-higher buildings worldwide is now 144, up from 126 in 2017, a figure that represents an 89% increase over five years. In 2013, there were 76 buildings 300 meters or higher worldwide; in 2000, only 26.
- Nineteen cities worldwide got a new tallest building, all but five of which were in Asia. The new heights being reached in Southeast Asia are likely indicative of improving economic conditions in countries such as Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, which are experiencing growth in industrial production, foreign direct investment, and tourism, among other inputs.
- Residential functions made up 31.5% of completed buildings with a total of 45 buildings, maintaining a similar share from 2017, which saw 47 buildings completed and a 32% share.
- The average height of 200-meter-plus buildings completed in 2018 was 247 meters, a slight increase over the 244-meter figure for 2017. The average height of the World’s 100 Tallest Buildings grew again, to 381 meters, from 372 meters in 2017.
- Prediction for 2019: between 120 and 150 buildings of 200 meters or greater height will be completed.
1. Citic Tower, Beijing, China: 108 stories, 528 meters, 1,731 feet
2. Vincom Landmark 81, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: 81 stories, 461 meters, 1,513 feet
3. Changsha IFS Tower T1, Changsha, China: 94 stories, 452 meters, 1,483 feet
4. China Resources Tower, Shenzhen, China: 67 stories, 393 meters, 1,288 feet
5. Nanning Logan Century 1, Nanning, China: 82 stories, 381 meters, 1,251 feet
6. Hanking Center Tower, Shenzhen, China: 73 stories, 350 meters, 1,148 feet
7. Four Seasons Place, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: 65 stories, 343 meters, 1,124 feet
8. Comcast Technology Center, Philadelphia: 59 stories, 342 meters, 1,121 feet
9. One Shenzhen Bay Tower 7, Shenzhen, China: 71 stories, 341 meters, 1,120 feet
10. Suning Plaza Tower 1, Zhenjiang, China: 75 stories, 338 meters, 1,109 feet
11. DAMAC Heights, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: 88 stories, 335 meters, 1,099 feet
12. 3 World Trade Center, New York City: 69 stories, 329 meters, 1,079 feet
13. Baoneng Center, Shenzhen, China: 65 stories, 327 meters, 1,074 feet
14. Salesforce Tower, San Francisco: 61 stories, 326 meters, 1,070 feet
15. Magnolias Waterfront Residences Tower 1, Bangkok, Thailand: 70 stories, 315 meters, 1,033 feet
15. Changsha IFS Tower T2, Changsha, China: 63 stories, 315 meters, 1,033 feet
17. Honglou Times Square, Lanzhou, China: 56 stories, 313 meters, 1,027 feet
18. Guangfa Securities Headquarters, Guangzhou, China: 59 stories, 308 meters, 1,010 feet
19. Huaxun Center, Shenzhen, China: 70 stories, 286 meters, 938 feet
20. The Address Residence - Fountain Views I, Dubai, UAE: 70 stories, 283 meters, 929 feet
Download the CTBUH Year in Review: Tall Trends of 2018 report.
Related Stories
| Feb 14, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti names Al Hashimi vice president for its Middle East Operations
Al Hashimi is joining the company to help expand Thornton Tomasetti’s business in the region and support clients locally.
| Feb 8, 2012
World’s tallest solar PV-installation
The solar array is at the elevation of 737 feet, making the building the tallest in the world with a solar PV-installation on its roof.
| Jan 30, 2012
Hollister Construction Services to renovate 30 Montgomery Street in Jersey City, N.J.
Owner Onyx Equities hires firm to oversee comprehensive upgrades of office building.
| Jan 16, 2012
Mid-Continent Tower wins 25 Year Award from AIA Eastern Oklahoma
Designed by Dewberry, iconic tower defines Tulsa’s skyline.
| Jan 4, 2012
Shawmut Design & Construction awarded dorm renovations at Brown University
Construction is scheduled to begin in June 2012, and will be completed by December 2012.
| Jan 3, 2012
Rental Renaissance, The Rebirth of the Apartment Market
Across much of the U.S., apartment rents are rising, vacancy rates are falling. In just about every major urban area, new multifamily rental projects and major renovations are coming online. It may be too soon to pronounce the rental market fully recovered, but the trend is promising.
| Dec 27, 2011
Ground broken for adaptive reuse project
Located on the Garden State Parkway, the master-planned project initially includes the conversion of a 114-year-old, 365,000-square-foot, six-story warehouse building into 361 loft-style apartments, and the creation of a three-level parking facility.
| Dec 21, 2011
BBI key to Philly high-rise renovation
The 200,000 sf building was recently outfitted with a new HVAC system and a state-of-the-art window retrofitting system.
| Dec 19, 2011
Chicago’s Aqua Tower wins international design award
Aqua was named both regional and international winner of the International Property Award as Best Residential High-Rise Development.
| Dec 14, 2011
Belfer Research Building tops out in New York
Hundreds of construction trades people celebrate reaching the top of concrete structure for facility that will accelerate treatments and cures at world-renowned institution.
