| Tall buildings in the Washington metropolitan area | |
|---|---|
 Skyline of Rosslyn, Arlington in 2018 | |
| Population | 6,436,489 (2024) |
| Tallest building | Capital One Tower (2018) |
| Tallest building height | 470 ft (143.3 m) |
| Tallest structure | Washington Monument (1884) |
| Tallest structure height | 555 ft (169 m) |
| Major clusters | Rosslyn Tyson's Corner Bethesda Reston Crystal City |
| Number of tall buildings (2025) | |
| Taller than 100 m (328 ft) | 22 |
| Number of tall buildings (feet) | |
| Taller than 300 ft (91.4 m) | 32 |
The Washington metropolitan area, with a population of 6.4 million, is centered on Washington D.C., the capital of the United States. The Height of Buildings Act of 1899 and 1901 limits building heights in Washington D.C. to a maximum of 130 feet (40 m) in most cases. As a result, Washington D.C. is devoid of skyscrapers, and there are no buildings with over 20 stories. Instead, the majority of high-rise buildings in the metropolitan area are located outside the capital. [1] This distribution is unique among American cities. With 33 buildings taller than 300 ft (91 m), the Washington metropolitan area has less tall buildings than other U.S. metropolitan areas of a similar size. It is the largest metropolitan area in the United States without a skyscraper taller than 492 feet (150 m). Since 2018, the tallest building in the Washington metropolitan area has been the 470 ft (143 m) Capital One Tower in Tysons, Virginia.
Contents
- History
- Map of tallest buildings
- By cluster
- Tallest buildings
- Tallest under construction or proposed
- Under construction
- Proposed
- Timeline of tallest buildings
- Skylines
- See also
- References
The Washington Monument, which rises 555 feet (169 m), has been the tallest free-standing structure in both Washington D.C. and its metropolitan area since its completion in 1884. However, as it is not a habitable building, the title of the tallest building in both Washington D.C. was taken by the Old Post Office in 1899 via its 315 ft (96 m) clock tower, which was constructed before the city's height restrictions were enacted. Before the 1980s, the only other buildings that surpassed 300 ft (91 m) in height were the George Washington Masonic National Memorial and the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
Beginning in the 1960s, the unincorporated area of Rosslyn in Arlington County, Virginia was rezoned to allow for high-rise commercial development. [2] [3] Later urban plans included more residential space, orienting the area towards mixed-use development. In 1982, the Rosslyn Twin Towers became the tallest buildings in the metropolitan area. High-rise development became more common from the 1970s onwards in the metropolitan area. The Washington Metro, which opened in 1976, encouraged transit-oriented development in multiple locations besides Rosslyn. The rate of construction increased substantially in the 2010s, particularly in the census-designated place (CDP) of Tysons, also known as Tyson's Corner. Capital One Tower was completed there in 2018, [4] and the metropolitan area's second tallest building, Capital One Center M3, was built nearby in 2022. [5]
The two largest concentrations of high-rises are in Rosslyn, which sits southwest of Washington D.C. directly across the Potomac River, and in Tysons, which is about ten miles west of the capital. In addition to Rosslyn, significant high-rise clusters in Arlington County include Ballston and Crystal City (whose high-rise footprint extends to Pentagon City). Notable clusters elsewhere that include buildings taller than 300 ft (91 m) include Bethesda, Maryland and Reston, Virginia. Shorter high-rise groupings can be found in Eisenhower East and Bailey's Crossroads in Virginia, and North Bethesda, Rockville, and Silver Spring in Maryland. Besides Silver Spring, these clusters are all located west of Washington D.C.
