How Tall is the Empire State Building?

The height of the Empire State Building is 1,250 ft (381 meters). If the 203 ft (62 m) pinnacle is included, the height is 1,453 ft-89/16 in (443.09 m). The 102 story building is at the Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street intersection. Construction of the tower ended in 1931. It is currently the tallest building in New York City.

Architectural Design

The building has 2,158,000 sq ft (200,500 m2) of office space. There are 85 office and commercial stories. The 86th floor has indoor and outdoor observation decks. The other sixteen stories are representative of the Art Deco Tower.

At its top is the observatory (102nd floor). At the top of the observatory is the pinnacle. Broadcast antennas cover it. At the topmost is a lightning rod.

Facts and Figures

The height of the Empire State Building is matched by its impressive features. It was the first building in history to have over 100 floors. From the street level to the 102nd floor are 1,860 steps. It currently has 73 elevators and about 6,500 windows.

The base of the building is 8,094 m2 or 2 acres. It takes less than 60 seconds to reach floor 80. From there you can take another elevator or climb stairs. There are more than 1,000 businesses in the edifice. There are more than 22,000 employees working in it. It is the second biggest office complex in the US. It is second only to the Pentagon.

The building has around 9,000 faucets, 2,500,000 ft (760,000 m) of electrical wire and over 70 mi (113 km) of pipe. The entire structure weighs about 370,000 short tons (340,000 t). Indiana limestone panels were used to construct its exterior.

Height Comparison with Other Buildings

Its height was first surpassed by the Griffin Television Tower Oklahoma in 1954. For 36 years the Empire State Building was the world’s tallest free-standing structure until 1967 when it was surpassed by the Ostankino Tower.

The Empire State held the distinction of the world’s biggest skyscraper for over 40 years. It was finally passed by the World Trade Center’s North Tower in 1972. The destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001 made the Empire State Building the tallest again in the Big Apple. But there are other buildings in construction that may surpass its height.

The height of the Empire State Building has made it a US cultural landmark. It has been used in several movies, including the 1933 film King Kong and Independence Day.