Asia
Taiwan
Taipei
Skyscraper
Taipei 101
Name:Taipei 101
Construction began:1999
Completion:2004
Client:Taipei Financial Center Corporation
Architect:C.Y. Lee & Partners
Height:508 metres
Number of floors:101 above ground, 5 underground
Construction cost:approx. US$1.7 billion
Taipei 101 above dense urban development with other skyscrapers and mountains in the background.

Taipei 101: The World’s Tallest Building from 2004 to 2010

Location: Taipei 101 is located in the Xinyi District, in the eastern part of Taiwan’s capital, Taipei. This modern business and shopping district is centered around Taipei City Hall and is home to numerous shopping malls, hotels, and office buildings.

Significance: Standing 508 meters tall, Taipei 101 was the world’s tallest building from 2004 to 2010. It was also the first skyscraper ever to surpass the 500-meter mark. Today, Taipei 101 remains the tallest building in Taiwan and one of Taipei’s most recognizable landmarks.

Construction HistoryIn the early 1990s, the site where Taipei 101 now stands was still a large parking lot. It formed part of the Xinyi Planning District, which Taipei was deliberately developing into a modern business and financial center. Taipei 101 was originally planned as a much shorter high-rise, but the design was later expanded to include 101 above-ground floors. Taiwan’s frequent earthquakes and powerful typhoons placed exceptionally high demands on the building’s structural design. Construction began in 1999 and included a deep pile foundation, massive supporting columns, and specialized stabilization systems. During a major earthquake in 2002, two construction cranes collapsed, killing five people. The skyscraper’s main structural framework remained largely undamaged. Taipei 101 was completed in 2004 and opened as the tallest building in the world at the time.

Architecture: Taipei 101 stands 508 meters tall and has 101 floors above ground and five below ground. Its distinctive silhouette is formed by eight stacked building sections, each consisting of eight floors, with a design inspired by bamboo and traditional Chinese pagodas. A combination of steel, high-strength concrete, massive exterior columns, and large trusses allows the skyscraper to withstand powerful typhoons and earthquakes. Its blue-green glass and aluminum façade gives the tower its characteristic appearance. Specially shaped corners also help reduce strong wind vortices, limiting the building’s movement in high winds.

Tuned mass damper: A 660-ton steel sphere hangs in the upper floors of Taipei 101 and forms the centerpiece of a giant tuned mass damper. In strong winds, it moves in the opposite direction to the tower’s sway, helping to reduce the building’s movement. Its effect was particularly striking during Typhoon Soudelor on August 8, 2015, when the sphere moved by 1 meter, the largest displacement ever recorded for the system. By design, it can move up to approximately 1.5 meters from its resting position.

Use today: Today, Taipei 101 is a multifunctional complex combining offices, shops, restaurants, observation areas, and event spaces. Most of the tower is occupied by offices, while a multi-story shopping mall with numerous stores and dining options is located at its base. Restaurants and publicly accessible visitor areas can also be found on the upper floors. After dark, Taipei 101 is regularly illuminated in different colors and used for light shows, messages marking special occasions, and public events. Its standard lighting follows the seven colors of the rainbow, with a different color assigned to each day of the week. The tower therefore glows red on Mondays and green on Thursdays. Taipei 101 is also famous for its spectacular New Year’s Eve fireworks display, which is staged around the skyscraper every year.

Observation deck: Two high-speed elevators carry visitors from the 5th to the 89th floor in just 37 seconds, reaching speeds of up to 60.6 km/h. The main observation deck sits at a height of 382 meters and offers 360-degree views across Taipei. Additional visitor areas extend as high as the 101st floor, around 438 meters above the ground. Even more spectacular is “Skyline 460,” a secured outdoor area located approximately 460 meters above the ground near the top of the skyscraper. In the upper visitor area, guests can also see the tuned mass damper that helps reduce the building’s movement during strong winds.

Free solo ascent: On January 25, 2026, American free solo climber Alex Honnold climbed the skyscraper without a rope or any form of fall protection. He took around 91 minutes to reach the top. Netflix broadcast the spectacular ascent live worldwide, while thousands of people watched from the ground. Honnold became the first person to climb Taipei 101 completely without safety equipment. French climber Alain Robert had already climbed the skyscraper in 2004, although he used safety equipment at the time.

  • Taipei 101 above dense urban development with other skyscrapers and mountains in the background.
  • Upper section of Taipei 101 from an elevated perspective with city buildings and wooded mountains in the background.
  • Taipei 101 with an illuminated top in a night skyline filled with lit skyscrapers.
  • Illuminated Taipei 101 above a vast cityscape with mountains in the background.
  • Taipei 101 amid the cityscape, framed by green trees in the foreground.