Megatall
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) defines a ‘megatall’ building as one that is more than 600 m (1,968 ft) in height. This classification exceeds ‘supertall’ buildings which are those exceeding 300 m (984 ft) in height.
The widely recognised CTBUH criteria for determining the height of a building is the ‘…lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flagpoles or other functional-technical equipment.’
As of February 2016, only three megatall buildings had been completed:
- The Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
- Shanghai Tower in Shanghai.
- Makkah Royal Clock Tower in Mecca.
As the CTBUH has said, this is the ‘era of the megatall’. They estimate that the number of buildings classified as megatall will have risen to seven by 2020 with the following projects having been completed:
- Ping An Finance Centre, Shenzhen.
- Greenland Center, Wuhan.
- Signature Tower, Jakarta.
- Kingdom Tower, Jeddah.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings
- 7 Engineering Wonders of the World.
- Buildings of a very great height ITGH.
- CN Tower.
- Core.
- Fire risk in high-rise and super high-rise buildings DG 533.
- Groundscraper.
- High-rise building.
- Megacity.
- Megastructure.
- Multi-storey structure.
- Skyscraper.
- Storey.
- Supertall.
- Super-slender.
- Tall building.
- Tallest buildings in the world.
- The history of fabric structures.
- The Mile.
- Tower.
- Twisting buildings.
- Types of building.
[edit] External references
- CTBUH - The Tallest 20 in 2020
- Dezeen - Megatall skyscraper era
Featured articles and news
We're expanding our collaborative mission by launching DB Intelligence, an exclusive market research advisory panel. Built environment professionals can now get paid to share their expertise on industry trends, products and services.
Panel members receive direct financial incentives for participating in research projects like short surveys, 1-2-1 interviews and focus groups. Register today to shape the future of the construction sector.
Building Control Independent Panel final report
A precis of a key report led by Dame Hackitt with full recommendations and link to the government response.
Guide to ISO 19650 for Architecture Firms (2026)
A user gives their low down.
A UK training and membership provider for mould remediation professionals.
Building Safety recap April, 2026
A short and longer run-through of the month, with links to further information and sources.
CIAT May 2026 briefing.
Independent NSI and BAFE study exploring how organisations are changing the way they buy fire safety services.
From medieval scribes to modern word art.
ECA welcomes crackdown on late payment and push for clean energy, whilst CIOB seek fixed cladding removal timeframes.
Cyber Security in the Built Environment
Protecting projects, data, and digital assets: A CIOB Academy TIS.
Managing competence in the built environment
ITFG publishes new industry guide on how to meet the ICC principles.
The UK's campaign to reduce noise pollution: Mythbusting, articles and topic guides.