List of tallest buildings in South Africa

"List of tallest buildings and structures in South Africa" redirects here. For structures, see List of tallest structures in South Africa.

Johannesburg, the economic capital of South Africa.

Cape Town, the oldest city in South Africa and an important economic centre.

Pretoria, executive capital of South Africa.

Durban, home of the busiest port in Africa and an important economic centre in South Africa.

Bloemfontein, The judicial capital of the South Africa

South Africa is the most structurally and economically developed nation on the African continent.^{[ citation needed ]} As such, its major cities have experienced construction booms that most other cities of similar size in Africa have not. Advanced development is significantly localised around five areas: Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein and Pretoria/Johannesburg. However, key marginal areas have experienced rapid growth. Such areas include the Garden Route (Mossel Bay to Plettenberg Bay), Rustenburg area, Nelspruit area, Cape West Coast, and the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast.

Tallest buildings

The Southern Life Centre.

Michelangelo Towers

Sandton

Sandton skyline

This list ranks South African buildings that stand at least 100 m (328 ft) tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details.

Name	Height (architectural)	Floors	Built	City	Notes
The Leonardo	234 m (767 ft)	55	2019	Sandton	Fourth tallest building in Africa and tallest in sub-Saharan Africa. The Leonardo was the tallest building on the continent for a brief period in April 2019.
Carlton Centre	223 m (732 ft)	50	1973	Johannesburg	Fifth tallest building in Africa and second tallest in sub-Saharan Africa. The Carlton Centre was the tallest building in Africa for 46 years, from 1973 until 2019.
Ponte City Apartments	173 m (568 ft)	54	1975	Johannesburg	Second-tallest residential building in Africa, and tallest in sub-Saharan Africa.
Marble Towers	152 m (499 ft)	32	1973	Johannesburg	For a brief period in 1973, this was the tallest building in Africa. Marble Towers was the first building in South Africa to surpass the ancient and early mediaeval height of the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt (146.6 m (481 ft)).
Pearl Dawn	152 m (499 ft)	31	2010	Umhlanga	[1] Tallest building in Greater Durban
South African Reserve Bank Building	148 m (486 ft)	38	1988	Pretoria	[2] Tallest building in Pretoria
88 on Field	146 m (479 ft)	26	1985	Durban	[3] Tallest building in Durban Central.
Sandton City Office Tower	141 m (463 ft)	22	1973	Sandton	Topped out in 2014.
Michelangelo Towers	140 m (460 ft)	34	2005	Sandton	The tallest single-purpose hotel in South Africa.
ABSA Tower	140 m (460 ft)	32	1970	Johannesburg	[ citation needed ]
KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel Tower 1	140 m (460 ft)	40	1970	Johannesburg	[4] Mothballed since 1998; under its previous name, the Johannesburg Sun Hotel, it was tied with the Trust Bank Building as the tallest building in Africa from 1970 to 1973.
Trust Bank Building	140 m (460 ft)	31	1970	Johannesburg	[5] The Trust Bank Building was tied with the Johannesburg Sun Hotel as the tallest building in Africa from 1970 to 1973.
Portside Tower	139 m (456 ft)	32	2014	Cape Town	[6] Tallest building in Cape Town. [7]
Standard Bank Centre	139 m (456 ft)	34	1968	Johannesburg	[8] The Standard Bank Centre was the tallest building in Africa from 1968 to 1970. It was the first building in South Africa taller than the Great Pyramid of Giza (138.5 m (454 ft)), which had been the continent's tallest structure from its completion ca. 2600 BC until overtaken by Cairo Tower in 1961.
Southern Life Centre	138 m (453 ft)	30	1973	Johannesburg	[9]
Monte Blanc	133 m (436 ft)	40	1985	Durban	[10]
ABSA Tower Pretoria	132 m (433 ft)	38	1976	Pretoria	[11]
Old Mutual Centre	130 m (430 ft)	33	1995	Durban	[12]
UCS Building	128 m (420 ft)	29	1976	Johannesburg	[13]
1 Thibault Square	127 m (417 ft)	31	1972	Cape Town	[14]
The Spinnaker	124 m (407 ft)	27	2007	Durban	[15]
Kine Centre	123 m (404 ft)	27	1974	Johannesburg	[16]
Embassy Building	120 m (390 ft)	28	1991	Durban	[17]
Metlife Centre	119 m (390 ft)	28	1993	Cape Town	[18]
Atterbury House	119 m (390 ft)	29	1976	Cape Town	[19]
Carlton Hotel	119 m (390 ft)	30	1973	Johannesburg	[20] Mothballed since 1997
Southern Sun Garden Court Marine Parade (ex-Elangeni Hotel)	118 m (387 ft)	28	1985	Durban	[21]
Southern Sun Garden Court North Beach (ex-Maharani Hotel)	118 m (387 ft)	33	1978	Durban	[22]
ABSA Centre	117 m (384 ft)	34	1970	Cape Town	[23]
Radiopark	117 m (384 ft)	30	1972	Johannesburg	[ citation needed ]
16 on Bree	118 m (387 ft)	36	2021	Cape Town
Civitas Building	112 m (367 ft)	31	1973	Pretoria	[23]
320 West Street	111 m (364 ft)	30	1973	Durban	[24]
Poyntons Centre	110 m (360 ft)	30	1968	Pretoria	[25]
Schlesinger Building	110 m (360 ft)	21	1965	Johannesburg	[26] The Schlesinger Building was the tallest building in Africa from 1965 to 1968.
Golden Acre	110 m (360 ft)	28	1979	Cape Town	[27]
Protea Hotel Landmark Lodge	110 m (360 ft)	31	1976	Durban	[28]
The Palace	110 m (360 ft)	26	1986	Durban	[29]
Agricultural Union Centre	110 m (360 ft)	30	1968	Pretoria	[29]
John Ross House	109 m (358 ft)	33	1973	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Durban Bay House	106 m (348 ft)	32	1986	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Southern Sun Cape Sun	105 m (344 ft)	32	1982	Cape Town	[30]
Highpoint Hillbrow	105 m (344 ft)	25	1972	Johannesburg	[31]
Pullman Hotel (ex-Radisson Blu Hotel & Residence)	104 m (341 ft)	26	1993	Cape Town	[ citation needed ]
Maluti	104 m (341 ft)	33	1984	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Transnet Tower	103 m (338 ft)	27	1973	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Pearl Sky	102 m (335 ft)	31	2010	Durban	[ citation needed ]
101 Victoria Embankment	102 m (335 ft)	38	1981	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Servamus House	102 m (335 ft)	25	1973	Durban	[ citation needed ]
Saambou Building	102 m (335 ft)	30	1974	Pretoria	[32]
Rissik Street Post Office	102 m (335 ft)	4	1897	Johannesburg	[ citation needed ] The historical Rissik Street Post Office was the tallest building in Africa from 1897 until 1965.
Western Cape Provincial Administration Building	101 m (331 ft)	26	1976	Cape Town	[ citation needed ]
Loch Logan Park	100 m (330 ft)	20	1983	Bloemfontein	[ citation needed ]
Bowmans Gilfillan Building	100 m (330 ft)	18	2017	Sandton	[ citation needed ]

Cities with the most skyscrapers

This table shows South African cities with at least one skyscraper over 100 metres in height, completed.

Rank	City	≥100 m	≥150 m	≥200 m	≥250 m	Total
1	Durban	19	1	–	–	19
2	Johannesburg	13	2	2	–	17
3	Cape Town	10	–	–	–	10
4	Pretoria	6	1	–	–	7
5	Sandton	2	–	1	–	3
6	Bloemfontein	2	–	–	–	2

Notable buildings in Johannesburg

Johannesburg features a variety of commercial and residential buildings, so there are also a few modern buildings such as the KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel and the Trust Bank Building. The Johannesburg-Pretoria combined metropolitan area has the densest concentration of skyscrapers on the continent and one of the densest in the world.

The Leonardo is a skyscaper in the prosperous northern suburb of Sandton. At 234 m, it is the fourth-tallest building in Africa and was the tallest building on the continent from mid-April 2019 until 29 April 2019, when it was surpassed by the Great Mosque of Algiers Tower in Algeria. It remains the tallest building in South Africa, and in sub-Saharan Africa.

Carlton Centre is a skyscraper and shopping centre located in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. At 223 metres (730 ft), it was the tallest building in Africa for 46 years and stands at about half the height of the Willis Tower (the former Sears Tower) in Chicago. It was the tallest building in the southern hemisphere when originally completed, and remains the fifth-tallest building in Africa and the second-tallest in sub-Saharan Africa. The Carlton Centre has 50 floors, and is 223 m (732 ft) tall. The foundations of the two buildings in the complex are 3.5 m (11 ft) in diameter and extend 20 m (66 ft) down to the bedrock, 30 m (98 ft) below street level. The building houses both offices and shops, and has over 46 per cent of the floor area below ground level. A viewing deck on the 50th floor offers views of Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Ponte City is a skyscraper in the Hillbrow neighborhood of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1975 to a height of 173 m (567.6 ft), making it the tallest residential skyscraper in Africa. The 54-story building is cylindrical, with an open center allowing additional light into the apartments. The center space is known as "the core" and rises above an uneven rock floor. Ponte City was an extremely desirable address for its views over all of Johannesburg and its surroundings. The sign on top of the building is the highest and largest sign in the southern hemisphere. It advertises the South African mobile phone company Vodacom.

Marble Towers is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1973 and is 32 storeys tall. The building has an eight-storey parking garage attached to it. It has the biggest electronic sign in the Southern Hemisphere, measuring 44 by 32 by 12 m (144 by 105 by 39 ft). It is made out of a mixture of concrete and marble. Its main use is for commercial offices.

KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. The complex, built in 1970 originally as "The Tollman Towers" (owned by the prominent South African family), were two separate towers, one 40 stories and the other 22, linked by a four-story podium with a pool deck and a running track. The building was empty for many years as the hotel, The Johannesburg Sun, relocated to Sandton. The building was then converted to a Holiday Inn, which also quickly failed. The new KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel opened in 2001, when it hosted 3000 police officers for the world summit on sustainable development, it was owned Mark Whitehead of Whitehead Enterprises, then also soon went out of business. The building is "mothballed."

Sandton City is a shopping centre located in Sandton, Johannesburg that was built as pioneer centre in 1973. The tower was built as part of a business park for downtown Sandton, a suburb of Johannesburg. Liberty Properties announced in 2008 that Sandton City would receive a R1.77 billion upgrade. Liberty Properties Chief Executive Samuel Ogbo envisaged the complex as South Africa's very own Wall Street The redevelopment will include the construction of a 60-storey office tower, new retail and office space and residential apartments. The extension will stretch to 30,000 m² (320,000 sq ft) and the total complex will have a gross lettable area of 158,000 m² (1,700,000 sq ft).

Trust Bank Building is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1970 to a height of 140 metres (460 ft). The building is the former head office of Trust Bank of South Africa, and as such has one of the largest bank vaults in South Africa. The building was sold in February 2003 for Rand 6.4 million (USD $640.000), which may prompt the name to be changed to that of the new tenant.

11 Diagonal Street is a skyscraper in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1984 to a height of 80 metres (260 ft). It is designed to look like a diamond as it reflects different views of the Central Business District from each angle of the building.

Panorama of the central business district of Johannesburg.

Timeline of tallest buildings in South Africa

Timeline of the tallest buildings in South Africa. Excludes all demolished or destroyed buildings.

Name	City	Years as tallest	Meters	Feet	Floors	Photo
The Leonardo	Sandton	2019–present	234	767	55
Carlton Centre	Johannesburg	1973–2019	223	732	50
Marble Towers	Johannesburg	1973-1973	152	499	32
KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel Tower 1	Johannesburg	1970-1973	140	460	40
Trust Bank Building	Johannesburg		140	460	31
Standard Bank Centre	Johannesburg	1968-1970	139	456	34
Schlesinger Building	Johannesburg	1965-1968	110	361	21
Rissik Street Post Office	Johannesburg	1910 [lower-alpha 1] -1962	102	335	4

Tallest topped out, under construction, approved, proposed and on hold

This lists skyscrapers that are topped out, under construction, on hold, approved or proposed in South Africa, but are not yet completed structures as of July 2020 ^[update] . This list only includes buildings of more or equal to 100 metres.

Name	Height m / ft	Floors	Year	City	Status
W Hotel & Residences	145 metres (476 ft)	36	TBC	Cape Town	Postponed
Northern Lights	*132 metres (433 ft)	38	TBC	Sandton	Never Built
Oceans Umhlanga Tower 1	125 metres (410 ft)	30	TBC	Umhlanga	Under Construction
Oceans Umhlanga Tower 2	125 metres (410 ft)	30	TBC	Umhlanga	Under Construction
One on Bree	131 metres (430 ft)	40	TBC	Cape Town	Proposed
Radisson Blu Hotel	112 metres (367 ft)	28	2022	Umhlanga	Complete
*Rough estimate from CTBUH. The actual height of this building has not been announced yet.

See also

• Architecture portal

• List of tallest structures in South Africa
• List of tallest buildings in Johannesburg
• List of tallest buildings in Cape Town
• List of tallest buildings in Durban
• List of tallest buildings in Pretoria
• List of tallest structures by country
• List of World Heritage Sites in Africa
• List of tallest buildings in Africa

Notes

1. The Rissik Street Post Office was built in 1897, and was thus already standing when the Union of South Africa was first formed.

References

1. "Pearl Dawn". The Skyscraper Center. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
2. "South African Reserve Bank Building, Pretoria - 103551 - EMPORIS". Emporis. Archived from the original on 24 March 2007.
3. "88 on Field, Durban". Emporis. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
4. "Kwa Dukuza Egoli Hotel Tower 1, Johannesburg". Emporis. Archived from the original on 10 February 2007.
5. "Trust Bank Building, Johannesburg". Emporis. Archived from the original on 6 December 2012.
6. "The Building". Portside. Archived from the original on 19 October 2014.
7. "Cape Town's tallest building officially unveiled". Property 360. IOL Property. 15 August 2014. Archived from the original on 16 August 2014.
8. "Standard Bank Centre, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012.
9. "Southern Life Centre, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
10. "Monte Blanc, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
11. "ABSA Tower, Pretoria". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012.
12. "Old Mutual Centre, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
13. "UCS Building, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
14. "BP Centre, Cape Town". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
15. "The Spinnaker, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
16. "Kine Centre, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
17. "Embassy Building, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
18. "Metlife Centre, Cape Town". Emporis. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012.
19. "Shell House, Cape Town". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
20. "Carlton Centre Hotel, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
21. "Holiday Inn Durban - Marine Parade, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
22. "Holiday Inn Garden Court North Beach, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
23. "ABSA Centre Cape Town, Cape Town". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
24. "320 West Street, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
25. "Poyntons Centre, Pretoria". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
26. "Schlesinger Building, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
27. "Golden Acre, Cape Town". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
28. "Protea Hotel Landmark Lodge, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
29. "The Parade, Durban". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
30. "Holiday Inn Cape Town, Cape Town". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
31. "Highpoint Hillbrow, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
32. "Saambou Bank Building - The Skyscraper Center". www.skyscrapercenter.com. Retrieved 15 August 2020.