List of tallest buildings in Detroit facts for kids

The skyline of Detroit in 2015

This article is about the tallest buildings in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit is a big city in the United States. It has many tall buildings, called skyscrapers and high-rises.

The tallest building in Detroit is the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. It is 727 feet (222 meters) tall and has 73 floors! This building is right on Detroit's International Riverfront. It's not just the tallest building in Detroit, but also the tallest in the whole state of Michigan. It's even one of the tallest hotel buildings in the Western Hemisphere (that's half of the world!). Another very tall building is Ally Detroit Center, which is the second tallest in the city and state.

Detroit started building skyscrapers a long time ago, in 1889. The first one was the 10-story Hammond Building. After that, more tall buildings appeared, like the Savings Bank Building and the Majestic Building. The 1920s, known as the "Roaring Twenties," was a time when Detroit built many beautiful and fancy skyscrapers. Some of these include the Penobscot, Guardian, Fisher, Buhl, Stott, and Broderick.

In the 1960s, One Woodward Avenue was the tallest building built, standing at 430 feet (131 meters). Detroit has eight skyscrapers that are at least 492 feet (150 meters) tall. It also has twenty-seven buildings that are at least 327 feet (100 meters) tall. When we look at all the tall buildings, Detroit's skyline is ranked third in the Midwestern United States. Only Chicago and Minneapolis have more tall buildings in that region. Across the whole United States, Detroit's skyline is ranked fourteenth.

The newest skyscrapers built in Detroit are One Detroit Center (finished in 1993) and Hollywood Casino at Greektown (finished in 2009). The Hollywood Casino is 348 feet (106 meters) tall and has 30 floors. Many old buildings in Detroit have also been fixed up and made new again. For example, the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel was built in 1924 and restored in 2008. It is 349 feet (106 meters) tall.

Detroit's Tallest Buildings

This list shows the tallest skyscrapers in Detroit that are at least 300 feet (91 meters) tall. We measure their height by including spires and other parts of the building's design, but not antennas. The "Year" column tells you when the building was finished.

Rank	Name	Image	Height feet / m	Floors	Architect	Year	Notes
01.01	Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center		727 / 222	73	John Portman & Associates	1977	This is the tallest building in Detroit and Michigan since 1977. It was once the tallest hotel in the world! It was updated in 2004.
2	Hudson's Detroit		685 / 208	49	SHoP Architects Hamilton Anderson Associates	2024	This is the tallest building finished in the 2020s.
3	Ally Detroit Center		619 / 189	43	Philip Johnson John Burgee	1993	This was the tallest building finished in Detroit in the 1990s.
4	Penobscot Building		565 / 172	47	Wirt C Rowland	1928	When it was finished in 1928, it was the eighth tallest building in the world! It was Detroit's tallest building from 1928 to 1977.
5 (tie)	RenCen Tower 100		522 / 159	39	John Portman & Associates	1977
	RenCen Tower 200		522 / 159	39	John Portman & Associates	1977
	RenCen Tower 300		522 / 159	39	John Portman & Associates	1977
	RenCen Tower 400		522 / 159	39	John Portman & Associates	1977
9	Guardian Building		495 / 151	40	Wirt C Rowland	1929	This building is famous for its unique design and colors.
10	Book Tower		475 / 145	38	Louis Kamper	1926	The Book Tower and the building next to it were recently updated for almost $400 million. They reopened in 2023 with homes, shops, and offices.
11	150 West Jefferson		455 / 139	26	Heller Manus Architects	1989	This was the tallest building finished in Detroit in the 1980s.
11.012	Fisher Building		444 / 135	30	Albert Kahn Associates	1928	This building is known for its beautiful art deco style.
12.013	Cadillac Tower		438 / 133	40	Bonnah & Chaffee	1927
13.014	David Stott Building		437 / 133	38	John M Donaldson	1929
14.015	One Woodward Avenue		430 / 131	28	Minoru Yamasaki	1963	This was the tallest building finished in the city in the 1960s.
15.016	Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building		393 / 120	27	Smith, Hinchman & Grylls	1976	This building is used by the US government.
16.017	DTE Energy Headquarters		375 / 114	25	Emery Roth & Sons	1971	This is the main office for DTE Energy.
17.018	David Broderick Tower		369 / 113	35	Louis Kamper Paul Kamper	1928	This building was fully updated in 2012. It now has homes on floors 5-34 and shops/offices on the lower floors.
18.019	211 West Fort Street		368 / 112	27	Harley, Ellington, Cowin & Stirton	1963
20	Buhl Building		366 / 112	29	Wirt C Rowland	1925
20.021	Westin Book Cadillac Hotel		349 / 106	29	Louis Kamper	1924	This hotel was once the tallest hotel in the world when it was finished in 1924. It was restored in 2008.
21.022	Hollywood Casino at Greektown		348 / 106	30	Paul Steelman Rossetti	2009	This was the tallest building finished in Detroit in the 2000s.
22.023	First National Building		341 / 104	26	Albert Khan	1930	This was the tallest building finished in Detroit in the 1930s.
23.024 (tie)	RenCen Tower 500		339 / 103	21	John Portman & Associates	1981
	RenCen Tower 600		339 / 103	21	John Portman & Associates	1981
25.026	1001 Woodward		338 / 103	23	Smith, Hinchman & Grylls	1965
26.027	Renaissance City Apartments		332 / 101	33	Ehrenkrantz, Echkstat & Whitelaw	1985
27.028	AT&T Building Addition		327 / 100	17	H. G. Christman-Burke Company	1974
28.029	Chrysler House		324 / 99	23	Daniel Hudson Burnham	1912
30	Jeffersonian Apartments		322 / 98	30	Gino Rossetti	1965
30.031	AT&T Building		319 / 97	19	Smith, Hinchman & Grylls	1927
31.032 (tie)	Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Building		318 / 97	22		1971
	Coleman A. Young Municipal Center		318 / 97	20	Harley, Ellington & Day	1954	This was the tallest building finished in the city in the 1950s.
34	Huntington Bank Tower		311 / 95	20	Neumann/Smith Architecture	2022
35	Penobscot Building Annex		310 / 95	23	Donaldson & Meier	1913
34.036 (tie)	1300 Lafayette East Cooperative		305 / 93	29	Gunnar Birkerts	1961
	Riverfront Tower 300		305 / 93	29	Kadushin	1983
	Riverfront Tower 200		305 / 93	29	Kadushin	1983
39	The Residences Water Square		300 / 91	25		2024

Buildings Under Construction

Downtown Detroit's Renaissance Center in 2014

This list shows tall buildings that are currently being built in Detroit. They are expected to be at least 200 feet (61 meters) tall.

Timeline of Detroit's Tallest Buildings

The Penobscot Building in 2007, one of Detroit's tallest buildings.

This list shows which buildings were once the tallest in Detroit. For many years, churches and government buildings with tall steeples were the highest points in the city. The Hammond Building, finished in 1889, is thought to be Detroit's first skyscraper. But it wasn't taller than the steeple of the Fort Street Presbyterian Church. The first skyscraper to truly be the tallest building in Detroit was the Ford Building, completed in 1909.

Images for kids

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  The Huntington Bank Tower, completed in 2022.

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Edificios más altos de Detroit para niños