San Francisco,
California, in the United States, has at least 482
high-rises,[1] 58 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 April 2023[update] is the
17th-tallest building in the
United States.[2] 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.[3] The city's third-tallest building is
181 Fremont, rising to 802 ft (244 m).
San Francisco has 27 skyscrapers that rise at least 492 feet (150 m). Six 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.[note 1]
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.[4] 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.[5] 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.
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.[12] 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.[13] Over 250 historic buildings were protected from development and developers were required to set aside open space for new projects.[14] 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.[15][16]
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.[17] 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).[18][19] 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.
Originally completed as an office tower in 1974 as the California Automobile Association Building. In 2015, it was completely renovated to a residential tower.[145][146][147]
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.
This project contains a 169-room Waldorf Astoria San Francisco hotel on the first 21 floors and approximately 154 residential units on the upper 33 floors.[153][154]
^Based on existing and under construction buildings over 150 meters tall. New York has 333 existing and under construction buildings at least 492 feet (150 m); Chicago has 140; Miami has 62; Houston has 38; Los Angeles has 36; Dallas has 21; San Francisco has 29. Source of Skyline ranking information: SkyscraperPage.com diagrams:
New York City,
Chicago,
Miami,
Houston,
Los Angeles,
Dallas,
San Francisco (as of April 2021).
^The Call Building was renamed the Spreckels Building in 1913 and was heavily modified in 1938, lowering its height to 299 feet (91 m).
^
abThe Russ Building, completed in 1927, tied the height of the Pacific Telephone Building. The city therefore had two tallest buildings for a period of 38 years, until the Hartford Building was completed in 1965.
^This building was constructed as the Hartford Building, but is now more commonly known as 650 California Street.
^This building was constructed as the Bank of America Center, but was renamed to 555 California Street in 2005.
Please note, that San Francisco with 29 high rises according to your numbers is ahead of Dallas. 29 vs 22 Please correct. Added with 10 planned high rises of 500 feet or more, it will in time surpass LA. Including one of well over 1,000 ft.
^Dineen, J.K. (October 21, 2011).
"Auto club tower revs up for housing". San Francisco Business Times. American City Business Journals. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^"Lumina II". Skyscraper Source Media. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^Dineen, J.K. (November 4, 2011).
"Transbay District site hits market". San Francisco Business Times. American City Business Journals. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^Matthew Poole; Erika Lenkert (February 2, 2010).
Frommer's San Francisco 2010. John Wiley & Sons. p. 206.
ISBN978-0-470-59486-5. [T]he Montgomery Block was the tallest building in the West when it was built in 1853.
^"Old St. Marys Phase I & II". Nibbi Brothers General Contractors. October 11, 2009. For nearly two decades after it was built, Old St. Mary's was the tallest building in California.
San Francisco,
California, in the United States, has at least 482
high-rises,[1] 58 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 April 2023[update] is the
17th-tallest building in the
United States.[2] 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.[3] The city's third-tallest building is
181 Fremont, rising to 802 ft (244 m).
San Francisco has 27 skyscrapers that rise at least 492 feet (150 m). Six 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.[note 1]
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.[4] 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.[5] 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.
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.[12] 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.[13] Over 250 historic buildings were protected from development and developers were required to set aside open space for new projects.[14] 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.[15][16]
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.[17] 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).[18][19] 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.
Originally completed as an office tower in 1974 as the California Automobile Association Building. In 2015, it was completely renovated to a residential tower.[145][146][147]
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.
This project contains a 169-room Waldorf Astoria San Francisco hotel on the first 21 floors and approximately 154 residential units on the upper 33 floors.[153][154]
^Based on existing and under construction buildings over 150 meters tall. New York has 333 existing and under construction buildings at least 492 feet (150 m); Chicago has 140; Miami has 62; Houston has 38; Los Angeles has 36; Dallas has 21; San Francisco has 29. Source of Skyline ranking information: SkyscraperPage.com diagrams:
New York City,
Chicago,
Miami,
Houston,
Los Angeles,
Dallas,
San Francisco (as of April 2021).
^The Call Building was renamed the Spreckels Building in 1913 and was heavily modified in 1938, lowering its height to 299 feet (91 m).
^
abThe Russ Building, completed in 1927, tied the height of the Pacific Telephone Building. The city therefore had two tallest buildings for a period of 38 years, until the Hartford Building was completed in 1965.
^This building was constructed as the Hartford Building, but is now more commonly known as 650 California Street.
^This building was constructed as the Bank of America Center, but was renamed to 555 California Street in 2005.
Please note, that San Francisco with 29 high rises according to your numbers is ahead of Dallas. 29 vs 22 Please correct. Added with 10 planned high rises of 500 feet or more, it will in time surpass LA. Including one of well over 1,000 ft.
^Dineen, J.K. (October 21, 2011).
"Auto club tower revs up for housing". San Francisco Business Times. American City Business Journals. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^"Lumina II". Skyscraper Source Media. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^Dineen, J.K. (November 4, 2011).
"Transbay District site hits market". San Francisco Business Times. American City Business Journals. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
^Matthew Poole; Erika Lenkert (February 2, 2010).
Frommer's San Francisco 2010. John Wiley & Sons. p. 206.
ISBN978-0-470-59486-5. [T]he Montgomery Block was the tallest building in the West when it was built in 1853.
^"Old St. Marys Phase I & II". Nibbi Brothers General Contractors. October 11, 2009. For nearly two decades after it was built, Old St. Mary's was the tallest building in California.