You’ve probably looked at a skyscraper and wondered if the people at the top actually feel the clouds hitting the glass. It’s a dizzying thought. When we talk about the absolute king of the skyline, the conversation always starts and ends in Dubai. If you’re hunting for the answer to how many floors is the tallest building, the number you need to memorize is 163.
That’s the floor count of the Burj Khalifa.
But honestly? It’s not just a single number. The way we count "floors" in these mega-structures is actually a bit of a mess once you get into the engineering weeds. You have occupied floors, mechanical floors, and then there’s the "vanity height"—the empty space at the top that exists just to break records.
The Burj Khalifa and the 163-Floor Reality
The Burj Khalifa has held the crown since 2010. It stands at 828 meters, which is roughly 2,717 feet. To put that in perspective, if you stacked about three Eiffel Towers on top of each other, you’d still be looking up at the Burj's spire.
While the building has 163 floors above ground, the experience of being there is split up like a vertical city. You aren't just going to "the top." You're going to specific zones.
- The Hotel Life: The first eight floors belong to the Armani Hotel. It’s sleek, minimalist, and exactly what you’d expect from Giorgio Armani’s first foray into hotels.
- Living in the Sky: From floor 19 to 108, it’s mostly residential. Imagine doing your laundry on the 90th floor while a sandstorm rolls in below you.
- Corporate Suites: The higher you go, the more exclusive it gets. The corporate suites occupy most of the levels from 112 up to 154.
- The Utility Zones: Those last few floors? Floors 160 through 163 are technical. They house the guts of the building—electrical systems, water pumps, and the heavy-duty machinery that keeps a half-mile-tall straw from falling over.
It takes about 3,000 stairs to reach the very top. Thankfully, nobody actually does that unless they’re a professional athlete or a very confused tourist. The elevators are some of the fastest in the world, zipping you up to the observation decks at 10 meters per second. Your ears will pop. Multiple times.
Why "Tallest" Is Sometimes a Trick Question
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is the group that officially decides who wins the height wars. They have different categories because architects like to play games with spires.
For instance, Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur is currently the second-tallest building in the world. It has 118 floors, hence the name. But if you look at it, a huge chunk of its height comes from a massive spire that reaches up to 678.9 meters.
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Then you have the Shanghai Tower. It has 128 floors. Even though it’s shorter than Merdeka 118 in total height, it actually feels "taller" to some because its highest occupied floor is higher up than the one in the Malaysian tower.
Basically, you can have a building with fewer floors that is technically taller because the "hat" (the spire) is bigger. Architects call this "vanity height." It's a controversial topic in the world of urban design. Some experts, like those at the CTBUH, argue that a spire should count if it’s a permanent part of the architectural design, while others think it’s just cheating to get a higher ranking on Google.
The Rising Challenger: Jeddah Tower’s 157-Floor Ambition
If we’re looking at the future of how many floors is the tallest building, we have to talk about Saudi Arabia. The Jeddah Tower is currently under construction again after a long pause. As of early 2026, it has surpassed the 80-floor mark and is climbing fast.
The plan for Jeddah Tower is to be the first "kilometer-high" building.
It’s aiming for a final height of over 1,000 meters.
Interestingly, it is projected to have about 157 floors.
Wait. 157 floors?
If the Burj Khalifa has 163, how is a taller building going to have fewer floors?
It comes down to ceiling height and the "spire-to-floor" ratio. The Jeddah Tower is designed with a massive, tapering top that will house a high-altitude observatory, but much of that upper needle is structural rather than livable. It’s a different philosophy of design. They are using something called "pumpcrete" technology to blast high-performance concrete nearly a kilometer into the sky. It’s never been done before.
Engineering the Impossible
Building 163 floors into the desert sky isn’t just about stacking bricks. The Burj Khalifa uses a "buttressed core" design. Think of it like a tripod. There’s a central hexagonal core supported by three wings. This shape helps the building "confuse" the wind.
At that height, wind is the enemy. If the building were a flat slab, the wind would push against it with enough force to snap the structure. Instead, the tapering "steps" of the Burj break up the wind vortices.
You also have to deal with the heat. In Dubai, the temperature can hit 50°C (122°F). The glass on the Burj is coated with a special reflective material to keep the interior from turning into a literal oven. Even then, the cooling system is so intense that the condensation collected from the AC units every year could fill about 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
The Global Top 5 by Floor Count (as of 2026)
- Burj Khalifa (Dubai): 163 floors. Still the champ.
- Shanghai Tower (Shanghai): 128 floors. Known for its "twist" that reduces wind loads.
- Lotte World Tower (Seoul): 123 floors. It looks like a giant silver fountain pen.
- Makkah Royal Clock Tower (Mecca): 120 floors. It has the largest clock face on Earth.
- Merdeka 118 (Kuala Lumpur): 118 floors. The new kid on the block with a very long "hat."
What Most People Get Wrong
A common misconception is that the tallest building is the one with the most floors. That's rarely the case. For example, the Willis Tower in Chicago (formerly the Sears Tower) has 108 floors. It was built in 1974. Even though it's much shorter than the new mega-towers in Asia and the Middle East, its floor count is still higher than many buildings that are technically "taller" due to their spires.
Another weird fact: the top floors of the Burj Khalifa are essentially uninhabitable for anything other than machinery. You can’t go there to hang out. The highest floor you can actually visit as a tourist is the 148th-floor observation deck, though there is a "VIP" lounge on levels 152-154.
Practical Insights for Your Next Sky-High Trip
If you’re planning to visit one of these giants, here is the "insider" way to do it:
- Book the "Sunrise" Slot: At the Burj Khalifa, you can get tickets for 5:00 AM. It’s cheaper than the sunset rush, and you get to see the shadow of the world's tallest building stretch across the entire city of Dubai.
- The "At the Top" Trick: Don’t just buy the cheapest ticket. The level 124/125 deck is usually packed. If you can swing the extra cost for "At the Top SKY" (Level 148), you get a much quieter experience and better refreshments.
- Check the Weather: On very foggy days in Dubai, the view from the top is literally just white clouds. You can’t see the ground at all. Some people love the "floating in heaven" vibe, but if you want to see the Palm Jumeirah, check the visibility forecast first.
- Don't Forget the Elevators: The ride is part of the show. Most of these towers have multimedia displays inside the elevator cars that show you how high you are relative to other landmarks like the Eiffel Tower or the Great Pyramid.
The race for the sky isn't over. With the Jeddah Tower aiming to finish by 2028, the answer to how many floors is the tallest building will likely change again soon. But for now, the 163 floors of the Burj Khalifa remain the ultimate benchmark for human engineering.
To get the most out of your visit to a megatall skyscraper, you should check the official website for "At the Top" at least two weeks in advance, as sunset time slots usually sell out first. Also, consider visiting the Dubai Fountain at the base of the tower immediately after your descent for a ground-level perspective of the structure's sheer scale.