List of tallest buildings in San Francisco facts for kids

The Salesforce Tower (right) has been San Francisco's tallest building since its construction in 2017. Prior to that, the Transamerica Pyramid (left) was the tallest building from its construction in 1972 until 2017. (Photographed on March 1, 2018)

San Francisco, California, in the United States, has at least 472 high-rises, 56 of which are at least 400 feet (122 m) tall. The tallest building is Salesforce Tower, which rises 1,070 ft (330 m) and as of September 2018^[update] is the 13th-tallest building in the United States. The city's second-tallest building is the Transamerica Pyramid, which rises 853 ft (260 m), and was previously the city's tallest for 45 years, from 1972 to 2017. The city's third-tallest building is 181 Fremont, rising to 802 ft (244 m).

San Francisco has 26 skyscrapers that rise at least 492 feet (150 m). Seven more skyscrapers of over 150 m are under construction, have been approved for construction, or have been proposed. Its skyline is currently ranked second in the Western United States (after Los Angeles) and sixth in the United States, after New York City, Chicago, Miami, Houston, and Los Angeles.

History

San Francisco's first skyscraper was the 218-foot (66 m) Chronicle Building, which was completed in 1890. M. H. de Young, owner of the San Francisco Chronicle, commissioned Burnham and Root to design a signature tower to convey the power of his newspaper. Not to be outdone, de Young's rival, industrialist Claus Spreckels, purchased the San Francisco Call in 1895 and commissioned a tower of his own that would dwarf the Chronicle Building. The 315-foot (96 m) Call Building was completed in 1898 and stood across Market Street from the Chronicle Building. The Call Building (later named the Spreckels Building, and Central Tower today) would remain the city's tallest for nearly a quarter century.

Both steel-framed structures survived the 1906 earthquake, demonstrating that tall buildings could be safely constructed in earthquake country. Other early twentieth-century skyscrapers above 200 feet (61 m) include the Merchants Exchange Building (1903), Humboldt Bank Building (1908), Hobart Building (1914), and Southern Pacific Building (1916). Another skyscraper boom took hold during the 1920s, when several Neo-Gothic and Art Deco high rises, reaching three to four hundred feet (90 to 120 m) in height, were constructed, including the Standard Oil Building (1922), Pacific Telephone Building (1925), Russ Building (1927), Hunter-Dulin Building (1927), 450 Sutter Medical Building (1929), Shell Building (1929), and McAllister Tower (1930).

The Great Depression and World War II halted any further skyscraper construction until the 1950s when the Equitable Life Building (1955) and Crown-Zellerbach Building (1959) were completed. Many of San Francisco's tallest buildings, particularly its office skyscrapers, were completed in a building boom from the late 1960s until the late 1980s. During the 1960s, at least 40 new skyscrapers were built, and the Hartford Building (1965), 44 Montgomery (1967), Bank of America Center (1969), and Transamerica Pyramid (1972) each, in turn, took the title of tallest building in California upon completion. At 853 feet (260 m) tall, the Transamerica Pyramid was one of the most controversial, with critics suggesting that it be torn down even before it was completed.

This surge of construction was dubbed "Manhattanization" by opponents and led to local legislation that set some of the strictest building height limits and regulations in the country. In 1985, San Francisco adopted the Downtown Plan, which slowed development in the Financial District north of Market Street and directed it to the area South of Market around the Transbay Terminal. Over 250 historic buildings were protected from development and developers were required to set aside open space for new projects. To prevent excessive growth and smooth the boom-and-bust building cycle, the Plan included an annual limit of 950,000 square feet (88,000 m²) for new office development, although it grandfathered millions of square feet of proposals already in the development pipeline. In response, voters approved Proposition M in November 1986 that reduced the annual limit to 475,000 square feet (44,100 m²) until the grandfathered square footage was accounted for, which occurred in 1999.

Aerial photo of downtown San Francisco, 2015. The Transamerica Pyramid is visible on the right. The foundation of the Salesforce Tower is visible on the lower left.

These limits, combined with the early 1990s recession, led to a significant slowdown of skyscraper construction during the late 1980s and 1990s. To guide new development, the city passed several neighborhood plans, such as the Rincon Hill Plan in 2005 and Transit Center District Plan in 2012, which allow taller skyscrapers in certain specific locations in the South of Market area. Since the early 2000s, the city has been undergoing another building boom, with numerous buildings over 400 feet (122 m) proposed, approved, or under construction; some, such as the two-towered One Rincon Hill and mixed-use 181 Fremont, have been completed. Multiple skyscrapers have been constructed near the new Transbay Transit Center, including Salesforce Tower, which topped-out in 2017 at a height of 1,070 feet (330 m). This building is the first supertall skyscraper in San Francisco and among the tallest in the United States.

Tallest buildings

This list ranks San Francisco skyscrapers that stand at least 400 feet (122 m) tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details but does not include antenna masts. The "Year" column indicates the year in which a building was completed.

Rank	Name	Image	Height ft (m)	Floors	Use	Year	Coordinates	Notes
1	Salesforce Tower		1,070 (326)	61	Office	2018	37°47′24″N 122°23′49″W / 37.7899°N 122.3969°W / 37.7899; -122.3969 (Salesforce Tower)	17th-tallest building in the United States 2nd-tallest building in California Tallest building in San Francisco since 2018 Tallest building constructed in San Francisco in the 2010s
2	Transamerica Pyramid		853 (260)	48	Office	1972	37°47′42.72″N 122°24′10.08″W / 37.7952000°N 122.4028000°W / 37.7952000; -122.4028000 (Transamerica Pyramid)	59th-tallest building in the United States 5th-tallest building in California Tallest building in San Francisco from 1972 until 2018, when Salesforce Tower was topped-off. Tallest building on the West Coast from 1972 until 1974 Tallest building constructed in San Francisco in the 1970s
3	181 Fremont		802 (245)	56	Office, Residential	2017	37°47′23″N 122°23′43″W / 37.78970°N 122.39535°W / 37.78970; -122.39535 (181 Fremont)	2nd-tallest mixed-use residential building west of the Mississippi River.
4	555 California Street		779 (237)	52	Office	1969	37°47′30.84″N 122°24′13.68″W / 37.7919000°N 122.4038000°W / 37.7919000; -122.4038000 (555 California Street)	Tallest building on the West Coast from 1969 to 1972 Tallest building constructed in the city in the 1960s Formerly known as Bank of America Center Largest office building in San Francisco by floor area.
5	345 California Center		721 (220)	48	Hotel, Office	1986	37°47′33.00″N 122°24′1.80″W / 37.7925000°N 122.4005000°W / 37.7925000; -122.4005000 (345 California Center)	Tallest mid-block skyscraper in San Francisco Tallest building constructed in the city in the 1980s The height shown includes flagpoles.
6	Millennium Tower		645 (197)	58	Hotel, Residential	2009	37°47′25.44″N 122°23′45.96″W / 37.7904000°N 122.3961000°W / 37.7904000; -122.3961000 (Millennium Tower)	Tallest building constructed in the city in the 2000s Fact: The Millennium Tower has tilted up to 2 inches a year and has sunk as much as 3 inches per year
7	One Rincon Hill		641 (195)	60	Residential	2008	37°47′8.8″N 122°23′31.7″W / 37.785778°N 122.392139°W / 37.785778; -122.392139 (One Rincon Hill South Tower)	Originally known as One Rincon Hill South Tower. Tallest all-residential building in the city.
8	Park Tower at Transbay		605 (184)	43	Office	2018	37°47′25″N 122°23′39″W / 37.79028°N 122.39417°W / 37.79028; -122.39417 (Park Tower at Transbay)
9	50 Fremont Center		600 (183)	43	Office	1985	37°47′25.7″N 122°23′50.1″W / 37.790472°N 122.397250°W / 37.790472; -122.397250 (50 Fremont Center)
	101 California Street		600 (183)	48	Office	1982	37°47′34.26″N 122°23′52.55″W / 37.7928500°N 122.3979306°W / 37.7928500; -122.3979306 (101 California Street)
11	The Avery (Transbay Block 8)*		575 (175)	56	Residential	2019	37°47′16″N 122°23′39″W / 37.78778°N 122.39417°W / 37.78778; -122.39417 (The Avert (Transbay Block 8))
12	Market Center		573 (175)	40	Office	1975	37°47′22.38″N 122°24′1.08″W / 37.7895500°N 122.4003000°W / 37.7895500; -122.4003000 (Chevron Tower)	Also known as Chevron Tower
13	Four Embarcadero Center		571 (174)	45	Office	1982	37°47′42.72″N 122°23′45.96″W / 37.7952000°N 122.3961000°W / 37.7952000; -122.3961000 (Four Embarcadero Center)
14	One Embarcadero Center		568 (173)	45	Office	1971	37°47′40.2″N 122°23′58.92″W / 37.794500°N 122.3997000°W / 37.794500; -122.3997000 (One Embarcadero Center)
15	44 Montgomery Street		565 (172)	43	Office	1967	37°47′23.28″N 122°24′6.48″W / 37.7898000°N 122.4018000°W / 37.7898000; -122.4018000 (44 Montgomery Street)	Tallest building in California from 1967 to 1969
16	Spear Tower		564 (172)	43	Office	1976	37°47′35.84″N 122°23′40.27″W / 37.7932889°N 122.3945194°W / 37.7932889; -122.3945194 (One Market Plaza, Spear Tower)
17	One Sansome Street		550 (168)	41	Office	1984	37°47′25.5″N 122°24′4.6″W / 37.790417°N 122.401278°W / 37.790417; -122.401278 (One Sansome Street)	Also known as the Citigroup Center
18	The Harrison		541 (165)	49	Residential	2014	37°47′11.04″N 122°23′31.44″W / 37.7864000°N 122.3920667°W / 37.7864000; -122.3920667 (One Rincon Hill North Tower)	Originally known as One Rincon Hill North Tower.
19	One Front Street		538 (164)	38	Office	1979	37°47′30.5″N 122°23′55.7″W / 37.791806°N 122.398806°W / 37.791806; -122.398806 (One Front Street)	Also known as Shaklee Terraces and 444 Market Street
20	525 Market Street		528 (161)	39	Office	1973	37°47′25.80″N 122°23′56.76″W / 37.7905000°N 122.3991000°W / 37.7905000; -122.3991000 (First Market Tower)
	McKesson Plaza		528 (161)	38	Office	1969	37°47′19.32″N 122°24′9.36″W / 37.7887000°N 122.4026000°W / 37.7887000; -122.4026000 (McKesson Plaza)
22	425 Market Street		525 (160)	38	Office	1973	37°47′27.96″N 122°23′53.16″W / 37.7911000°N 122.3981000°W / 37.7911000; -122.3981000 (425 Market Street)
23	One Montgomery Tower		500 (152)	38	Office	1982	37°47′20.76″N 122°24′11.88″W / 37.7891000°N 122.4033000°W / 37.7891000; -122.4033000 (Post Montgomery Center)
24	333 Bush Street		495 (151)	43	Office, Residential	1986	37°47′26.16″N 122°24′10.80″W / 37.7906000°N 122.4030000°W / 37.7906000; -122.4030000 (333 Bush Street)
25	Hilton San Francisco Tower I		493 (150)	46	Hotel	1971	37°47′7.08″N 122°24′39.24″W / 37.7853000°N 122.4109000°W / 37.7853000; -122.4109000 (Hilton San Francisco Tower I)	Tallest building used exclusively as a hotel in the city
26	Pacific Gas & Electric Building		493 (150)	34	Office	1971	37°47′29.76″N 122°23′44.88″W / 37.7916000°N 122.3958000°W / 37.7916000; -122.3958000 (Pacific Gas & Electric Building)
27	50 California Street		487 (148)	37	Office	1972	37°47′38.40″N 122°23′50.64″W / 37.7940000°N 122.3974000°W / 37.7940000; -122.3974000 (50 California Street)
	555 Mission Street		487 (148)	33	Office	2008	37°47′18.60″N 122°23′54.96″W / 37.7885000°N 122.3986000°W / 37.7885000; -122.3986000 (555 Mission Street)	Tallest office building constructed in the 2000s
29	St. Regis Museum Tower		484 (148)	42	Hotel, Residential	2005	37°47′10.68″N 122°24′4.68″W / 37.7863000°N 122.4013000°W / 37.7863000; -122.4013000 (St. Regis Museum Tower)
30	100 Pine Center		476 (145)	33	Office	1972	37°47′33.32″N 122°23′56.21″W / 37.7925889°N 122.3989472°W / 37.7925889; -122.3989472 (100 Pine Center)
	45 Fremont Street		476 (145)	34	Office	1978	37°47′28.32″N 122°23′49.56″W / 37.7912000°N 122.3971000°W / 37.7912000; -122.3971000 (45 Fremont Street)	Also known as the Bechtel Building
32	333 Market Street		472 (144)	33	Office	1979	37°47′30.98″N 122°23′51.00″W / 37.7919389°N 122.3975000°W / 37.7919389; -122.3975000 (333 Market Street)
33	650 California Street		466 (142)	34	Office	1964	37°47′34.2″N 122°24′18.7″W / 37.792833°N 122.405194°W / 37.792833; -122.405194 (650 California Street)	Tallest building in California from 1965 to 1967 Also known as the Hartford Building
34	LUMINA I		450 (137)	43	Residential	2015	37°47′19.30″N 122°23′31.99″W / 37.7886944°N 122.3922194°W / 37.7886944; -122.3922194 (LUMINA I)
35	100 First Plaza		447 (136)	27	Office	1988	37°47′21.0″N 122°23′51.0″W / 37.789167°N 122.397500°W / 37.789167; -122.397500 (100 First Plaza)
36	340 Fremont Street		440 (134)	40	Residential	2016	37°47′13.23″N 122°23′33.86″W / 37.7870083°N 122.3927389°W / 37.7870083; -122.3927389 (340 Fremont Street)
	399 Fremont Street		440 (134)	42	Residential	2016	37°47′13.94″N 122°23′31.34″W / 37.7872056°N 122.3920389°W / 37.7872056; -122.3920389 (399 Fremont Street)
	500 Folsom (Transbay Block 9)*		440 (134)	43	Residential	2019	37°47′14″N 122°23′43″W / 37.78722°N 122.39528°W / 37.78722; -122.39528 (Transbay Block 9)
39	One California		438 (134)	32	Office	1969	37°47′35.52″N 122°23′49.92″W / 37.7932000°N 122.3972000°W / 37.7932000; -122.3972000 (One California)
40	San Francisco Marriott Marquis		436 (133)	39	Hotel	1989	37°47′5.64″N 122°24′15.48″W / 37.7849000°N 122.4043000°W / 37.7849000; -122.4043000 (San Francisco Marriott Marquis)
41	Russ Building		435 (133)	32	Office	1927	37°47′28.32″N 122°24′10.08″W / 37.7912000°N 122.4028000°W / 37.7912000; -122.4028000 (Russ Building)	Tied as the tallest building constructed in the city in the 1920s
	140 New Montgomery		435 (133)	26	Office	1925	37°47′13.20″N 122°24′0.00″W / 37.7870000°N 122.4000000°W / 37.7870000; -122.4000000 (140 New Montgomery)	Tied as the tallest building constructed in the city in the 1920s Originally called the Pacific Telephone Building upon completion
43	Jasper		430 (131)	39	Residential	2015	37°47′9.19″N 122°23′37.61″W / 37.7858861°N 122.3937806°W / 37.7858861; -122.3937806 (45 Lansing Street)
44	The Infinity II		420 (128)	41	Residential	2009	37°47′21.76″N 122°23′26.39″W / 37.7893778°N 122.3906639°W / 37.7893778; -122.3906639 (The Infinity II)
	JPMorgan Chase Building		420 (128)	31	Office	2002	37°47′19.6″N 122°23′58.0″W / 37.788778°N 122.399444°W / 37.788778; -122.399444 (JPMorgan Chase Building, San Francisco)
	The Paramount		420 (128)	40	Residential	2002	37°47′12.0″N 122°24′7.0″W / 37.786667°N 122.401944°W / 37.786667; -122.401944 (Paramount, San Francisco)
47	Providian Financial Building		417 (127)	30	Office	1981	37°47′28.40″N 122°23′42.16″W / 37.7912222°N 122.3950444°W / 37.7912222; -122.3950444 (Providian Financial Building)
48	Three Embarcadero Center		413 (126)	31	Office	1977	37°47′42.5″N 122°23′50.5″W / 37.795139°N 122.397361°W / 37.795139; -122.397361 (Three Embarcadero Center)
	Two Embarcadero Center		413 (126)	30	Office	1974	37°47′41.8″N 122°23′54.5″W / 37.794944°N 122.398472°W / 37.794944; -122.398472 (Two Embarcadero Center)
	350 Mission Street		413 (126)	27	Office	2015	37°47′27.31″N 122°23′48.25″W / 37.7909194°N 122.3967361°W / 37.7909194; -122.3967361 (350 Mission Street)
51	595 Market Street		410 (125)	30	Office	1979	37°47′21.31″N 122°24′2.92″W / 37.7892528°N 122.4008111°W / 37.7892528; -122.4008111 (595 Market Street)
52	123 Mission Street		407 (124)	29	Office	1986	37°47′30.84″N 122°23′40.20″W / 37.7919000°N 122.3945000°W / 37.7919000; -122.3945000 (123 Mission Street)
53	101 Montgomery		404 (123)	28	Office	1984	37°47′25.44″N 122°24′8.64″W / 37.7904000°N 122.4024000°W / 37.7904000; -122.4024000 (101 Montgomery)
	Embarcadero West		404 (123)	34	Office	1989	37°47′37.9″N 122°24′1.6″W / 37.793861°N 122.400444°W / 37.793861; -122.400444 (Embarcadero West)
55	100 Van Ness Avenue		400 (122)	29	Residential	1974	37°46′36.2″N 122°25′09.1″W / 37.776722°N 122.419194°W / 37.776722; -122.419194 (100 Van Ness Avenue)	Originally completed as an office tower in 1974 before residential conversion in 2014 Also known as the California Automobile Association Building
	LUMINA II		400 (122)	38	Residential	2015	37°47′19.47″N 122°23′29.41″W / 37.7887417°N 122.3915028°W / 37.7887417; -122.3915028 (LUMINA II)

* indicates still under construction, but has been topped out

Tallest under construction, approved and proposed

Under construction

This lists buildings that are under construction in San Francisco and are planned to rise at least 100 meters (328 ft). Under construction buildings that have already been topped out are also included.

Approved

This lists buildings that are approved for construction in San Francisco and are planned to rise at least 100 meters (328 ft).

Proposed

This lists buildings that are proposed in San Francisco and are planned to rise at least 100 meters (328 ft).

* Table entries with dashes (—) indicate that information regarding building floor counts or dates of completion has not yet been released.

Timeline of tallest buildings

This lists buildings that once held the title of tallest building in San Francisco as well as the current titleholder, the Salesforce Tower.

The original Palace Hotel stood as San Francisco's tallest building from 1875 until 1890.

Name	Image	Street address	Years as tallest	Height ft (m)	Floors	Notes / Reference
Montgomery Block		628 Montgomery Street	1853–1854	~50 (15)	4
Old Saint Mary's Cathedral		660 California Street	1854–1875	90 (27)	1
Palace Hotel		2 New Montgomery Street	1875–1890	120 (37)	7
Chronicle Building		690 Market Street	1890–1898	218 (66)	10
Call Building		703 Market Street	1898–1922	315 (96)	15
225 Bush Street		225 Bush Street	1922–1925	328 (100)	22
140 New Montgomery		140 New Montgomery Street	1925–1964	435 (133)	26
Russ Building		235 Montgomery Street	1927–1964	435 (133)	31
650 California Street		650 California Street	1964–1967	466 (142)	33
44 Montgomery Street		44 Montgomery Street	1967–1969	565 (172)	43
555 California Street		555 California Street	1969–1972	779 (237)	52
Transamerica Pyramid		600 Montgomery Street	1972–2018	853 (260)	48
Salesforce Tower		415 Mission Street	2018–present	1,070 (326)	61

General

Specific

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Edificios más altos de San Francisco para niños