10 Tallest Buildings in Tokyo in 2021

Tokyo Skytree

Height (Architectural & To tip): 634 m (2080 ft)   Height (Roof): 495 m (1624 ft)

Year Built: 2012   Location: Sumida

Uses: Sightseeing, Broadcasting

Built in 2012, Tokyo Skytree has become the new icon of Tokyo, the tower is currently the world's second tallest man-made structure, only after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. The tower has two sky pods, one lower and larger, the other higher and smaller, each sky pod contains an observation deck (see details in Observation Decks in Tokyo), respectively at 350m and 450m high from ground. As shown in the picture above, the upper sky pod is surrounded by a spiral structure, it is a glass skywalk, in which visitors ascend the last few meters to the highest point of the upper observation deck.

Tokyo Tower

Height (Architectural & To tip): 333 m (1092 ft)   Height (Without antenna): 252 m (827ft)

Year Built: 1958   Location: Shiba-koen, Minato

Uses: Sightseeing, Broadcasting

Standing at 333 meters, Tokyo Tower was the tallest structure in Tokyo before March 2010, when it was surpassed by Tokyo Skytree. The design of the tower was inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and is 9 meters taller due to a much longer spire. The tower acts as the supportive structure for an antenna which is used for broadcasting and starts from a height of 252 meters. Besides the purpose of broadcasting, the tower contains two observation decks, the lower one at 150 meters high is the Main Deck and has two stories, the taller one is called Top Deck and is claimed to reach a height of 249 meters, though in fact it's lower than what is claimed, as the roof is only 252 meters, the deck is significantly below it.

1. Toranomon Hills

Height (Architectural & Roof): 256 m (838 ft)   Height (To tip): 258 m (846 ft)   Floor Count: 52

Year Built: 2014   Location: Toranomon, Minato

Uses: Hotel, Residential, Office   Floor area: 244,360 m²

Built in 2014, Toranomon Hills has been the tallest building in Tokyo for 5 years. The building is a mixed-use skyscraper, the bottom floors are occupied by retail stores, the floors above them until 36th floor are office floors, and the next 10 floors above that are for residential use, containing 172 units, the uppermost 6 floors are occupied by a Hyatt hotel, with 164 guest rooms. There's a rooftop bar on the top floor with great views of the city.

It's worth to note that the building has a road that goes through its base, a feature that kind of similar to the Gate Tower in Osaka. The road is called Loop Road No.2, it was built by Tokyo Metropolitan Government to connect Shinbashi and Toranomon districts in Central Tokyo, many houses were expropriated to make room for the road, and the government built the tower above the road to accommodate the displaced residents, so that they don't need to move away.

2. Midtown Tower

Height (Architectural & Roof): 248 m (814 ft)   Floor Count: 54

Year Built: 2007   Location: Akasaka, Minato

Uses: Hotel, Office   Floor area: 234,000 m²

Midtown Tower was the tallest building in Tokyo from 2007 to 2014. The 54-story building mainly serves as an office tower, office spaces occupy the floors 7 to 44, while the floors 45 to 53 are home to a Ritz-Carlton hotel. 54th floor is a mechanical floor.

3. Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

Height (Architectural & Roof): 243 m (798 ft)   Height (To tip): 260 m (853 ft)   Floor Count: 48

Year Built: 1991   Location: Shinjuku

Uses: Government office, Observation   Floor area: 196,000 m²

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is the headquarters of Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which governs the city of Tokyo and the whole Tokyo Metropolitan. The building was the tallest building in Tokyo from 1991 to 2007, and is still the tallest building in Shinjuku ward (the term 'ward' is equivalent to borough of some western cities), which is home to one of the largest skyscraper clusters in the city.

Designed by Kenzo Tange, the building is composed of two twin towers and a lower bridging building in between, its overall shape resembles that of a Gothic cathedral. Both of its towers have observation decks on uppermost floors and open to public for free.

4. Sunshine 60

Height (Architectural): 240 m (787 ft)   Height (To tip): 258 m (846 ft)   Floor Count: 60

Year Built: 1978   Location: Ikebukuro, Toshima

Uses: Office, Restaurants, Observation   Floor area: 241,546 m²

As its name suggests, Sunshine 60 has 60 floors, it's the building with highest number of floors in Tokyo. Floors 1 to 9 of the building are commercial spaces, floors 10 to 57 are office floors, the headquarters of FamilyMart (one of the largest convenience store chains in Asia) is on the 17th floor. 58th to 59th floors are occupied by restaurants. The 60th floor is an observation deck, visitors can see the aerial view of the city from a height of 222 meters (728 ft) off the ground.

Sunshine 60 is rumored to be a haunted skyscraper, as it was built on the site of the dismantled Sugamo Prison (numerous people were executed in the prison, including Hideki Tojo, the Prime Minister of Japan during WWII, he was hanged in the prison), there have been reports of supernatural sightings in the building.

The building is heavily featured in Japanese manga series "X", it's one of the sacred barriers (known as 'kekkai') protecting Tokyo in the manga. Now the area around Sunshine 60 is very popular among anime and manga enthusiasts, cosplayers can often be spotted around the site.

5. NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building

Height (Architectural & Roof): 240 m (787 ft)   Height (To tip): 272 m (893 ft)   Floor Count: 33

Year Built: 2000   Location: Shibuya

Uses: Office, Communication, Technical   Floor area: 51,122 m²

NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building is Tokyo's tallest building by pinnacle height, the design of the building closely similar to that of the Art-Deco skyscrapers built in New York City in 1930s, like the Empire State Building, or the Chrysler Building.

The building is owned by the NTT Docomo group (Japan's predominant mobile phone operator), and is totally used by the company itself, the floors under 15th floor are used for office space, floors 15 to 25 are used to house the company's technical equipment for its cellular telephone service.

A notable feature of the tower is that large clock installed on it, the clock is 15 meters in diameter. Before the completion of the Abraj Al Bait in Mecca, NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building had been the tallest clock tower in the world.

6. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower

Height (Architectural & Roof): 238 m (781 ft)   Height (To tip): 245 m (804 ft)   Floor Count: 54

Year Built: 2003   Location: Roppongi, Minato

Uses: Office, Museum, Observation, Retail   Floor area: 380,105 m²

Developed by Mori Building Company, which is the developer behind Toranomon Hills (the tallest building in this list), Roppongi Hills Mori Tower is intended to be a city within the city, it's one of the largest buildings in the world, with a total floor area of 380,105 square meters, this amount of space is even higher than that of Shanghai Tower, a megatall skyscraper that rises 632 meters.

The bottom 6 floors are retail spaces, floors 7 to 48 are office spaces, which are leased to a variety of companies, and also house the headquarters of Mori Building Company itself. The uppermost 6 floors are occupied by Mori Arts Center, which includes Mori Art Museum and an observatory, from where visitors are provided with the aerial view of Tokyo. Both indoor and open-air observation decks are available, respectively are on the 52nd floor and 54th floor.

7. Shinjuku Park Tower

Height (Architectural): 234 m (768 ft)   Height (Roof): 230 m (755 ft)   Height (To tip): 240 m (787 ft)   Floor Count: 52

Year Built: 1994   Location: Shinjuku

Uses: Hotel, Office   Floor area: 264,141 m²

Shinjuku Park Tower is the second tallest building in Shinjuku ward, and same as Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, this building is also designed by Kenzo Tange, it's a single building consisting of three connected towers.

Like many other skyscrapers in Tokyo, the building is mainly an office building, except for the upper floors, 39th to 52nd floors are occupied by a Park Hyatt hotel, the 52nd floor of the hotel has a bar called New York Bar, which is featured in the film Lost In Translation.

8. Tokyo Opera City Tower

Height (Architectural & Roof): 234 m (769 ft)   Floor Count: 54

Year Built: 1997   Location: Shinjuku

Uses: Office   Floor area: 242,261 m²

Tokyo Opera City Tower is the third tallest building in Shinjuku, it's named that for being a part of a complex called Tokyo Opera City, which contains a theater (the New National Theater) that is situated adjacent to tower.