List of tallest buildings in Boston

Boston is the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the largest city in New England. It is home to over 580 completed high-rises,^[1] 73 of which stand taller than 300 feet (91 m) as of 2025. Boston's skyline is by far the largest in New England, and the city has the second most skyscrapers taller than 492 ft (150 m) in the Northeastern United States, after New York City. The tallest building in Boston is the 62-story 200 Clarendon, better known as the John Hancock Tower; the office skyscraper rises 790 ft (241 m) in the Back Bay district, southwest of Downtown Boston.

Tall buildings in Boston
Skyline of Boston's Back Bay, with its three tallest buildings: The John Hancock Center (left), Prudential Tower (center), and One Dalton (right)
Tallest building	John Hancock Tower (1976)
Tallest building height	790 ft (241 m)
First 150 m+ building	Custom House Tower (1915)
Number of tall buildings
Buildings taller than 100 m	59 (2025)
Buildings taller than 150 m	26 (2025)
Buildings taller than 200 m	6
Number of tall buildings (feet)
Buildings taller than 300 ft	73 (2025)

Skyline of Boston's Financial District

The history of skyscrapers in Boston began early with the completion of the 13-story Ames Building in 1893. The Greek Revival style Custom House Tower, which was Boston's tallest building from 1915 to 1964, was among the first skyscrapers outside of New York City. Boston went through a major building boom from the 1960s to the early 1990s, resulting in the construction of over 30 buildings taller than 300 ft (91 m), including the John Hancock Tower and the city's second-tallest building, the Prudential Tower. At the time of the Prudential Tower's completion in 1964, it stood as the tallest building in North America outside of New York City.^[2]

After a hiatus in the 1990s, high-rise development resumed in the 2000s, with a higher share residential or mixed-use buildings. Since the 2016, several major projects have significantly altered the city's skyline, including four skyscrapers taller than 600 ft (183 m): Millennium Tower in 2016, One Dalton in 2020, and both Winthrop Center and One Congress in 2023. A fifth, South Station Tower, is under construction atop Boston's historic South Station, and is expected to be complete by 2025. Around the same period, the West End neighborhood has seen an influx in high-rises, such as The Hub on Causeway. The regeneration of the Seaport District since the 2000s has added many new high-rises to the former industrial area, although none of them surpass 300 ft in height.

Although Boston's skyscrapers are concentrated in the Financial District in downtown, its three tallest buildings—John Hancock Tower, Prudential Tower, and One Dalton—are located in Back Bay. Boston's skyline is shaped by the roughly 2.5 mile unofficial High Spine urban corridor,^[3] bypassing surrounding low-rise residential areas like Beacon Hill and the North End. In addition to the Seaport District southeast of downtown, the skyline has stretched westwards towards Fenway–Kenmore beginning in the 2010s. In the wider metropolitan area, there is an ongoing high-rise boom in neighboring Cambridge, as well as in Somerville to a lesser extent. Regulations on building shadows and the proximity of Logan International Airport to downtown have limited the height of skyscrapers in downtown Boston to below 800 ft (244 m).^[4]

History

Cityscape

A panorama of the Boston skyline as viewed from Prospect Hill in 2025

, with the Financial District on the left and Back Bay to the right

Map of tallest buildings

The map below shows the location of buildings taller than 300 feet (91.4 m) in Boston. Each marker is colored by the decade of the building's completion.

420m
458yds

73

72

71

70

69

68

67

66

65

64

63

62

61

60

59

58

57

56

55

54

53

52

51

50

49

48

47

46

45

44

43

42

41

40

39

38

37

36

35

34

33

32

31

30

29

28

27

26

25

24

23

22

21

20

19

18

17

16

15

14

13

12

11

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

   

Buildings taller than 300 ft (91 m) in Boston

•  1950s and before 
•  1960s 
•  1970s 
•  1980s 
•  1990s 
•  2000s 
•  2010s 
•  2020s 

1

John Hancock Tower

2

Prudential Tower

3

One Dalton

4

Winthrop Center

5

Millennium Tower

6

South Station Tower

7

One Congress

8

Federal Reserve Bank Building

9

One Boston Place

10

One International Place

11

100 Federal Street

12

One Financial Center

13

111 Huntington Avenue

14

Two International Place

15

One Post Office Square

16

One Federal Street

17

The Sudbury

18

Exchange Place

19

60 State Street

20

Hub on Causeway Office Tower

21

One Beacon Street

22

One Lincoln Street

23

28 State Street

24

Custom House Tower

25

Berkeley Building

26

Hub on Causeway Residential Tower

27

33 Arch Street

28

The Alcott

29

State Street Bank Building

30

Millennium Place Tower 1

31

Russia Wharf

32

125 High Street

33

100 Summer Street

34

Millennium Place Tower 2

35

Raffles Boston Back Bay Hotel & Residences

36

Avalon North Station

37

Keystone Building

38

Harbor Towers I

39

Harbor Towers II

40

John F. Kennedy Federal Building

41

One Devonshire Place

42

Westin Hotel at Copley Place

43

100 High Street

44

75 State Street

45

Boston Marriott Copley Place

46

101 Federal Street

47

Pierce Boston

48

177 Huntington

49

45 Province Street

50

500 Boylston Street

51

50 Post Office Square

52

Center for Life Science

53

John W. McCormack Post Office and Courthouse

54

AVA Theatre District Tower

55

101 Huntington Avenue

56

The Clarendon

57

Liberty Mutual Tower

58

Student Village Residence Halls II

59

Suffolk County Couthouse

60

888 Boylston Street

61

1001 Boylston Street

62

260 Franklin Street

63

McCormack Building

64

Avalon Exeter

65

100 Cambridge Street

66

Sheraton Boston Hotel South Tower

67

The Kensington

68

222 Berkeley Street

69

Ellison Building

70

W Boston Hotel and Residences

71

Boston University Center for Computing & Data Sciences

72

Radian Apartments

73

Oliver Street Tower

Tallest buildings

Boston skyscrapers that stand at least 300 feet (91 m) tall, based on standard height measurements, including spires and other architectural details, but not including antenna masts, are listed below. The "Year" column indicates the year when a building was completed.

  Was the tallest building in Boston upon completion

  Architecturally topped out but not yet completed

Rank	Name	Image	Coordinates	Height ft (m)	Floors	Purpose	Year	Notes
1	John Hancock Tower		42°20′57.4″N 71°04′29.2″W	01.0790 (240.8)	62	Office	1976	80th-tallest building in the U.S. as of 2021 Has been the tallest building in Boston, Massachusetts, and New England since 1976 Commonly known as John Hancock Tower, its original name (for John Hancock Financial), but now legally 200 Clarendon Street or Hancock Place.[5] Tallest building in Boston constructed in the 1970s[6][7][8]
2	Prudential Tower		42°20′49.78″N 71°04′57.08″W	750 (228.6)	52	Office	1964	112th-tallest building in the U.S. as of 2021 View Boston, the highest observation deck in New England, is located on the building's 50th, 51st, and 52nd floors. Tallest building in Boston constructed in the 1960s Was the tallest building in Boston before being surpassed by the John Hancock Tower[9][2][10]
3	One Dalton		42°20′44.7″N 71°05′02.2″W	748 (228)	61	Mixed-use	2020	Tallest residential building in Boston and New England.[11][12] Tallest building in Boston completed in the 2010s. Mixed-use residential and hotel building.
4	Winthrop Center		42°21′16.5″N 71°3′25.5″W	693 (211.3)	53	Mixed-use	2023	Tallest building in Boston outside of Back Bay. Tallest building in Boston constructed in the 2020s. Mixed-use residential and office building.[13][14]
5	Millennium Tower		42°21′21.01″N 71°3′33.91″W	681 (207.5)	54	Residential	2016	Tallest building in the Downtown Crossing neighborhood.[15]
6	South Station Tower		42°21′07″N 71°03′19″W	677 (206.4)	51	Mixed-use	2025	Mixed-use residential and office building. Located above South Station. Topped out in November 2023.[16][17][18][19]
7	One Congress		42°21′45″N 71°03′36″W	610 (185.9)	39	Office	2023	Topped off on July 15, 2021.[20][21][22][23]
8	Federal Reserve Bank Building		42°21′08.55″N 71°03′14.82″W	604 (184)	32	Office	1978	Formerly the tallest building in Boston's Financial District.[24]
9	One Boston Place		42°21′31″N 71°03′30″W	601 (183.2)	41	Office	1970	Tallest building in the Government Center neighborhood of Boston[25][26][27]
10	One International Place		42°21′20.8″N 71°03′07.5″W	600 (182.9)	46	Office	1987	Tallest building in Boston constructed in the 1980s.[28]
11	100 Federal Street		42°21′18″N 71°03′22″W	591 (180.1)	37	Office	1971	Also known as First National Bank Building.[29]
12	One Financial Center		42°21′08.6″N 71°03′23.0″W	590 (179.8)	46	Office	1984	[30]
13	111 Huntington Avenue		42°20′48.38″N 71°04′52.86″W	564 (172)	36	Office	2002	Second-tallest building in the Prudential Center complex. Tallest building in Boston completed in the 2000s.[31]
14	Two International Place		42°21′23″N 71°03′07″W	10.0538 (164)	35	Office	1993	Tallest building in Boston completed in the 1990s[32][33][34]
15	One Post Office Square		42°21′25″N 71°03′19″W	11.0525 (160)	40	Office	1981	[35]
16	One Federal Street		42°21′24″N 71°03′25″W	520 (158.5)	38	Office	1976	Originally known as the Shawmut Bank Building.[36]
17	The Sudbury		42°21′44″N 71°03′35″W	519 (158.2)	45	Residential	2020	Also known as the Bulfinch Crossing Residential Tower.[20]
18	Exchange Place		42°21′30″N 71°03′22″W	510 (155.5)	39	Office	1984	[37]
19	60 State Street		42°21′33″N 71°03′23″W	509 (155.2)	38	Office	1977	[38]
20	Hub on Causeway Office Tower		42°21′58″N 71°03′40″W	508 (154.8)	30	Office	2021	Tallest building in the West End[39]
21	One Beacon Street		42°21′30″N 71°03′39″W	507 (154.5)	36	Office	1972	[40]
22	One Lincoln Street		42°21′10″N 71°03′30″W	503 (153.3)	36	Office	2003	[41]
23	28 State Street		42°21′34″N 71°03′27″W	500 (152.4)	40	Office	1970	[42]
24	Custom House Tower		42°21′32.65″N 71°03′12.13″W	496 (151.2)	32	Hotel	1915	Tallest all-hotel building in Boston. Tallest building in Boston completed in the 1910s. Was the tallest building in Boston before being surpassed by the Prudential Tower.[43][44][45]
25	Berkeley Building		42.3497978°N 71.0732118°W / 42.3497978; -71.0732118 (Berkeley Building)	495 (150.9)	26	Office	1949	Also known as the Old John Hancock Building. Tallest building in Boston completed in the 1940s.[46][47][48]
26	Hub on Causeway Residential Tower		42.365457°N 71.0622266°W / 42.365457; -71.0622266 (Hub On Causeway Residential Tower)	495 (150.9)	45	Mixed-use	2019	Second-tallest building in the West End. Mixed-use residential and hotel building.[49][50][51][52]
27	33 Arch Street		42°21′21″N 71°03′28″W	489 (149.1)	33	Office	2004	[53][54]
28	The Alcott		42°21′55″N 71°03′54″W	487 (148.4)	44	Residential	2021	Third-tallest building in the West End. Also known as 33 Lomasney Way or the Garden Garage Redevelopment Project.[55]
29	State Street Bank Building		42°21′22″N 71°03′15″W	477 (145.4)	33	Office	1966	Also known as 225 Franklin Street.[56][57]
30	Millennium Place Tower 1		42°21′10″N 71°03′47″W	475 (144.8)	38	Mixed-use	2001	Mixed-use residential and hotel building. Also known as Ritz-Carlton Towers Boston Common - Tower II.[58][59]
31	Russia Wharf		42°21′12″N 71°03′10″W	456 (139)	31	Mixed-use	2011	Also known as Atlantic Wharf. Mixed-use office and residential building.[60]
32	125 High Street		42°21′18″N 71°03′13″W	452 (137.8)	30	Office	1990	Also known as High Street Tower.[61][62]
33	100 Summer Street		42°21′14″N 71°03′27″W	450 (137.2)	32	Office	1974	[63][64]
34	Millennium Place Tower 2		42°21′13″N 71°03′46″W	446 (135.8)	36	Mixed-use	2001	Mixed-use residential and hotel building. Also known as Ritz-Carlton Towers Boston Common - Tower II.[65][66][67]
35	Raffles Boston Back Bay Hotel & Residences		42°20′55″N 71°04′30″W	430 (131)[a]	33	Mixed-use	2022	Also known by its address, 40 Trinity Place. Mixed-use hotel and residential building.[68]
36	Avalon North Station		42°21′57″N 71°03′48″W	415 (126.5)	38	Residential	2016	Also known as Nashua Street Residences. Fourth-tallest building in the West End neighborhood[69][70]
37	Keystone Building		42°21′15″N 71°03′16″W	30.0400 (122)	32	Office	1971	[71][72]
38	Harbor Towers I		42°21′29″N 71°02′59″W	400 (121.9)	40	Residential	1971	[73][74]
39	Harbor Towers II		42°21′27″N 71°03′02″W	396 (120.7)	40	Residential	1971	[75]
40	John F. Kennedy Federal Building		42°21′40″N 71°03′36″W	400 (121.9)	26	Government	1967	[76]
41	One Devonshire Place		42°21′29″N 71°03′27″W	396 (120.7)	42	Mixed-use	1983	Mixed-use residential and office building.[77]
42	Westin Hotel at Copley Place		42°20′54″N 71°04′40″W	395 (120.4)	36	Hotel	1983	[78]
43	100 High Street		42°21′16″N 71°03′19″W	394 (120)	28	Hotel	1988	[79]
44	75 State Street		42°21′30″N 71°03′18″W	390 (118.9)	31	Office	1988	[80]
45	Boston Marriott Copley Place		42°20′48″N 71°04′44″W	382 (116.4)	39	Hotel	1984	[81]
46	101 Federal Street		42°21′18″N 71°03′25″W	382 (116.3)	31	Hotel	1988	[82]
47	Pierce Boston		42°20′38″N 71°06′06″W	378 (115.2)	30	Residential	2018	[83]
48	177 Huntington		42°20′42″N 71°04′58″W	367 (111.9)	28	Office	1973	Also known as the Christian Science Administration Building.[84]
49	45 Province Street	–	42°21′26″N 71°03′36″W	367 (111.9)	31	Residential	2009	[85]
50	500 Boylston Street		42°21′01″N 71°04′27″W	365 (111.3)	23	Office	1985	[86]
51	50 Post Office Square		42°21′20″N 71°03′18″W	364 (111)	20	Office	1947	Also known as the Verizon Building, New England Telephone & Telegraph Building, and Telephone Building.[87]
52	Center for Life Science	–	42°20′21″N 71°06′15″W	348 (106.1)	18	Laboratory	2008	[88]
53	John W. McCormack Post Office and Courthouse		42°21′26″N 71°03′25″W	345 (105.2)	22	Government	1931	[89]
54	AVA Theatre District Tower	–	42°21′05″N 71°03′50″W	338 (103)	29	Residential	2015	[90]
55	101 Huntington Avenue		42°20′49″N 71°04′51″W	336 (102.4)	25	Office	1973	[91]
56	The Clarendon	–	42°20′55″N 71°04′26″W	336 (102.4)	32	Residential	2009	[92]
57	Liberty Mutual Tower		42°20′57″N 71°04′18″W	335 (102.1)	23	Office	2013	[93]
58	Student Village Residence Halls II		42°21′12″N 71°07′04″W	331 (100.9)	26	Residential	2009	Student residences. Part of the John Hancock Student Village.[94]
59	Suffolk County Couthouse		42°21′35″N 71°03′40″W	330 (100.6)	19	Government	1939	[95]
60	888 Boylston Street	–	42°20′53″N 71°04′58″W	325 (99)	18	Office	2017	[96]
61	1001 Boylston Street	–	42°20′51″N 71°05′18″W	325 (99)	20	Office	2024	Also known as Parcel 12 Office Building.[97]
62	260 Franklin Street	–	42°21′25″N 71°03′14″W	323 (98.4)	23	Office	1985	[98]
63	McCormack Building		42°21′34″N 71°03′45″W	322 (98)	22	Office	1975	[99]
64	Avalon Exeter	–	42°20′55″N 71°04′46″W	320 (97.5)	28	Residential	2014	[100]
65	100 Cambridge Street	–	42°21′38″N 71°03′44″W	318 (97)	26	Mixed-use	1965	Currently a mixed-use office and residential building. Formerly known as the Leverett Saltonstall Building.[101]
66	Sheraton Boston Hotel South Tower	–	42°20′46″N 71°05′01″W	313 (95.4)	29	Hotel	1965	[102]
67	The Kensington	–	42°21′07″N 71°03′48″W	313 (95.4)	27	Residential	2013	[103]
68	222 Berkeley Street	–	42°21′02″N 71°04′24″W	309 (94.2)	22	Office	1991	[104]
69	Ellison Building	–	42°21′48″N 71°04′10″W	306 (93.4)	24	Health	1992	Part of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Tallest hospital building in Boston.[105]
70	W Boston Hotel and Residences		42°21′03″N 71°03′56″W	306 (93.2)	27	Mixed-use	2009	[106]
71	Boston University Center for Computing & Data Sciences		42°21′00″N 71°06′11″W	305 (93)	18	Education	2022	Part of Boston University. Tallest educational building in Boston.[107]
72	Radian Apartments	–	42°21′08″N 71°03′33″W	302 (92)	26	Residential	2014	[108]
73	Oliver Street Tower	–	42°21′20″N 71°03′11″W	301 (91.8)	21	Office	1991	[109]

1. Height is an estimate.

Tallest buildings by pinnacle height

Boston skyscrapers based on their pinnacle height, which includes radio masts and antennas, are listed below. Standard architectural height measurement, which excludes antennas in building height, is included for comparative purposes.^[110]

Rank	Name	Pinnacle height ft (m)	Standard height ft (m)
1	Prudential Tower	907 (276)	749 (228)
2	200 Clarendon Street	852 (260)	790 (241)
3	One Dalton Street	742 (226)	742 (226)
4	Millennium Tower	698 (213)	685 (209)
5	Winthrop Center	691 (211)	691 (211)
6	One Financial Center	683 (208)	590 (180)
7	One Beacon Street	623 (190)	505 (154)
8	Federal Reserve Bank Building	614 (187)	614 (187)
9	One Boston Place	601 (183)	601 (183)
10	One International Place	600 (183)	600 (183)

Tallest building by neighbourhood

Neighborhood	Building	Height ft (m)	Floors	Year	Notes
Back Bay	200 Clarendon	790 (241)	60	1976	[111]
Downtown Crossing	Millennium Tower	685 (209)	60	2016	[112]
Financial District	Federal Reserve Bank Building	614 (187)	32	1976	[113]
Chinatown	One Lincoln Street	503 (153)	36	2003	[114]
Government Center	28 State Street	500 (152)	40	1970	[115]
Theatre District	The Ritz-Carlton Boston Common	475 (145)	38	2001	[116]
West End	The Hub on Causeway	496 (151)	45	2021	[117]
Waterfront	Harbor Towers I	400 (122)	40	1971	[118]
Fenway–Kenmore	Pierce Boston	378 (115)	30	2018	[83]
Beacon Hill	McCormack Building	29.0322 (98)	22	1975	[119]

Tallest under construction or proposed

Under construction

The table ranks high-rises under construction in Boston that are expected to be at least 300 ft (91 m) tall as of 2025, based on standard height measurement. The “Year” column indicates the expected year of completion. Buildings that are on hold are not included. Table entries with dashes (—) indicate that information about the building is unknown or has not yet been released.

Name	Height ft (m)	Floors	Year	Notes
The Lyra	400 (122)	34	—	Located on 252-268 Huntington Avenue[120]
Fenway Center	337 (103)	22	2024	[121]
CSP - 4B Tower	302 (92)	12	2027	[122]

Proposed

The table ranks proposed high-rises in Boston that are expected to be at least 300 ft (91 m) tall., based on standard height measurement. Table entries with dashes (—) indicate that information about the building is unknown or has not yet been released.

Name	Height ft (m)	Floors	Status	Notes
Pinnacle at Central Wharf	600 (183)	42	Proposed	600' height variance approved by the Boston Planning and Development Agency on March 2, 2017.[123][124] Placed on indefinite hold in 2022.[125]
North Station Gateway	447 (136)	40	Proposed	[126][127][128]
Back Bay Station Residences	413 (126)	34	Approved	[129]

Timeline of tallest buildings

For most of Boston's earlier years, the tallest buildings in the city were churches with their steeples. The first skyscraper in the city is generally considered the Ames Building, completed in 1893.^[130] However, since the 13-story building did not surpass the steeple of the Church of the Covenant,^[131] it never became a city record holder. The first skyscraper to have the distinction of being Boston's tallest building was the Custom House Tower, completed in 1915.^[44]

Name	Image	Street address	Years as tallest	Height ft (m)	Floors	Coordinates	Notes
Old State House		206 Washington Street	1713–1745	08.065 (20)	3	42.3587401°N 71.057468°W / 42.3587401; -71.057468 (Old State House)	[132]
Old North Church		193 Salem Street	1745–1810	08.0175 (53)	1	42°21′58.78″N 71°03′16.04″W	[133]
Park Street Church		1 Park Street	1810–1867	07.0217 (66)	1	42°21′25″N 71°03′44″W	[134]
Church of the Covenant		67 Newbury Street	1867–1915	06.0236 (72)	1	42.352155°N 71.0737485°W / 42.352155; -71.0737485 (Church of the Covenant)	[131]
Custom House Tower		3 McKinley Square	1915–1964	05.0496 (151)	32	42°21′32.65″N 71°03′12.13″W	[43]
Prudential Tower		800 Boylston Street	1964–1976	04.0749 (228)	52	42°20′49.78″N 71°04′57.08″W	[9]
200 Clarendon		200 Clarendon Street	1976–present	03.0790 (241)	60	42°20′57.4″N 71°04′29.2″W	[7]

See also

• Architecture of Boston
• List of tallest buildings in Massachusetts outside of Boston
• List of tallest buildings in Cambridge, Massachusetts
• List of tallest buildings in Springfield, Massachusetts
• List of tallest buildings in Worcester, Massachusetts
• Trans National Place