So, if you’re standing in downtown Los Angeles looking up, you’d probably bet your car that the U.S. Bank Tower is the biggest thing around. It’s got that chunky, crown-like top that just feels massive. But honestly? You’d lose that bet. The Wilshire Grand Center is officially the highest building in california, and it has been since it snatched the title back in 2017.
It stands at exactly 1,100 feet.
But there is a catch. There's always a catch with these things. If you actually look at where the people are—the floors where you can grab a drink or sleep in a hotel room—the building is technically shorter than a few of its rivals. It basically "cheats" with a massive 295-foot spire that pokes into the clouds. Without that needle, it’s just another glass tower in the skyline.
The Spire Scandal: Why Height is Kinda Subjective
In the world of skyscrapers, there is this group called the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH). They’re the ones who decide who gets the trophy. According to their rules, architectural spires count toward total height, but "vanity" antennas do not.
The Wilshire Grand’s spire is considered architectural.
Because of that 295-foot stick of steel, the Wilshire Grand beats out the Salesforce Tower in San Francisco (1,070 feet) and the old champ, the U.S. Bank Tower (1,018 feet).
If you want to get technical—and people in SF love to get technical about this—the Salesforce Tower actually has a higher roof. If you were to drop a giant ruler from the very top of the highest occupied floor, San Francisco wins. But in the record books? L.A. keeps the crown.
It Broke a 40-Year Flat-Roof Tradition
For decades, every tall building in Los Angeles looked like a box. Seriously. Look at the skyline; it’s just a sea of flat tops. This wasn't because architects lacked imagination. It was actually the law.
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Back in 1974, a fire ordinance was passed that required every high-rise to have a flat roof for a helipad. The idea was that if the building caught fire, a helicopter could land on the roof and rescue people. It was a safety thing, but it made the city's architecture pretty boring.
The Wilshire Grand changed everything.
The developers convinced the city to let them ditch the helipad in exchange for other advanced safety features, like a dedicated fire elevator and extra-reinforced stairwells. This allowed them to build that beautiful, sloping glass roof that looks like a sail. It’s the first building in L.A. to break the "flat top" rule since the mid-seventies, and it paved the way for more creative designs you’re seeing pop up now in 2026.
The Concrete Pour That Broke Records
When they were building this thing, they didn't just move some dirt around. They set a Guinness World Record. To create the foundation, they had to perform a continuous concrete pour that lasted 18 hours.
- 2,120 truckloads of concrete.
- 82 million pounds of weight.
- More than 18,000 cubic yards of "mud."
Imagine a line of concrete mixers stretching for miles, all feeding into one giant hole in the ground. It was a logistical nightmare that somehow worked perfectly.
What’s Actually Inside the highest building in california?
It’s not just a giant ornament. The building is a massive "mixed-use" space, which is just fancy talk for saying it has a bit of everything.
The lower half is mostly Class A office space. If you’re a high-powered lawyer or a tech consultant, this is where you work. But the upper half is where it gets interesting. The InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown takes up the top floors.
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Check this out: when you check into the hotel, you don't go to the first floor. You go to the 70th floor.
The "Sky Lobby" is one of the coolest spots in the city. You step out of a high-speed elevator and you're immediately greeted by floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking the entire Los Angeles basin. On a clear day, you can see all the way to Santa Catalina Island.
Spire 73: Drinks in the Clouds
If you aren't afraid of heights, you’ve gotta visit Spire 73. It is the highest open-air bar in the Western Hemisphere.
It sits on—you guessed it—the 73rd floor.
Being up there is a trip. You’re outside, so you feel the wind and smell the city air, but you’re over a thousand feet up. There are fire pits to keep you warm because, believe it or not, L.A. gets chilly that high up, even in the summer. It’s expensive, yeah, but for the view? Totally worth it once.
Engineering for the "Big One"
Living in California means living with earthquakes. You can't just stick a 1,100-foot glass needle in the ground and hope for the best. The Wilshire Grand is basically a marvel of seismic engineering.
The building uses something called "buckling-restrained braces." Think of them like giant shock absorbers for a car, but for a skyscraper. During an earthquake, these braces absorb the energy of the shaking so the actual frame of the building doesn't snap. It’s designed to sway significantly without breaking.
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Honestly, if a massive earthquake hits while you’re in L.A., the 70th floor of the Wilshire Grand might actually be one of the safest places to be. It’s built to withstand forces that would level older, shorter buildings.
The Rivalry: L.A. vs. San Francisco
There is a bit of a "tallest building" cold war between Southern and Northern California. For a long time, San Francisco’s Transamerica Pyramid was the icon. Then the Salesforce Tower went up and dominated the Bay Area.
L.A. wasn't about to let that slide.
When the Wilshire Grand was being designed, the height was tweaked specifically to make sure it edged out the Salesforce Tower. It’s a bit of a vanity project, sure, but it’s also about prestige. Having the highest building in california brings in international business, high-end tourists, and a certain "global city" status that L.A. craves.
How to Experience it Yourself
If you're visiting or just want to play tourist in your own city, here is the move:
- Don't park at the building. It’s insanely expensive. Take the Metro to the 7th Street/Metro Center station; it drops you off right across the street.
- Go for the sunset. Aim to get to the Sky Lobby around 30 minutes before the sun goes down. You get the daytime view, the "golden hour" glow, and the city lights all in one trip.
- Check the weather. If it’s cloudy or foggy, don't bother. You'll literally be inside a cloud and won't see a thing.
- Dress up a little. If you're heading to Spire 73, they have a dress code. No flip-flops or gym shorts if you want to get past the elevator guard.
The Wilshire Grand Center isn't just a pile of glass and steel. It’s a sign that L.A. is finally looking up instead of just out. Whether you think the spire is "cheating" or not, you can't deny that it has completely redefined the California skyline.
If you want to see the future of California architecture, start by looking at the very top of this spire. It’s literally the highest point you can get to in the state without climbing a mountain.
Next Steps for Your Visit:
Before you head out, check the official Spire 73 website for reservation availability, as they often book up weeks in advance for weekend slots. If you're more interested in the architecture than the cocktails, grab a coffee at the ground-floor cafe and look up through the 70-foot glass atrium—it gives you a better sense of the building's massive scale than the view from the top ever could.