List of tallest buildings in the British Empire and the British Commonwealth

The title of tallest building in the British Empire (later in the Commonwealth) has been contested since the late nineteenth century. In this era the nations of the British Empire possessed a large measure of cultural unity and naturally looked to each other for comparison and competition. This was evident in the displays at Queen Victoria's silver and diamond jubilees and in the creation of the British Empire Games in 1930 (later the Commonwealth Games). A similar phenomenon occurred in the world of architecture and civics. Local boosters in cities and regions across the Empire covered the title of "greatest", "biggest", "largest" or "best" in the Empire.

This boosterism was concentrated in Canada where desire to claim the title spurned a race between cities and builders between 1905 and 1931.

In general the boosters focused on commercial buildings, as claiming the title was part of marketing the building to potential renters (and the city to the wider world). They conveniently ignored much taller non-commercial buildings such as St Paul's Cathedral which stands 111 metres (364 ft) and was consecrated in 1708, or Victoria Tower in the Palace of Westminster which was built in 1855 and measures 98.5 metres (323 ft). The Commonwealth of Nations slowly evolved out of the British Empire over decades, but the 1931 Statute of Westminster is often used as a dividing point. During the twentieth century the title was held primarily by Canadian buildings. Since the 1990s, however Asian buildings have held the title.

Height restrictions have much to do with this list. Until the 1960s, London, the capital of the Empire, had especially strict height maxima to preserve the views of historic structures. Until the late 1920 Montreal limited all buildings to a maximum of 10 stories, and it still limits buildings to less than the sea-level elevation of Mont Royal. Since 1989 Vancouver restricted buildings from blocking the North Shore Mountains, creating a practical upper limit of around 137 meters, until 1997 when seven sites were pre-selected for taller buildings as exceptions to the rule. Singapore limits all buildings to below 280 meters because of the proximity of Singapore Changi Airport.

The International Commerce Centre in Hong Kong is not included because it was built after Hong Kong left the Commonwealth.

The list also excludes Toronto's CN Tower as there is debate as to whether it is technically a building, or just a structure.

Tallest buildings in the Commonwealth

Years	Building (original name)	City	Region	Country	Height	Floors	Image
1998–present	Petronas Twin Towers	Kuala Lumpur	Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory	Malaysia	379 m (1,243 ft) (452 m with spires)	88
1997-1998	First Canadian Place	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	298 m (978 ft) (355 m with antenna)	72
1992-1997	Central Plaza	Central		Hong Kong	309 m (1,014 ft)(374 m with spire)	78
1990-1992	Bank of China Tower	Central		Hong Kong	305 m (1,001 ft)(367 m with spire)	72
1975-1990	First Canadian Place	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	298 m (978 ft) (355 m with antenna)	72
1972-1975	Commerce Court West	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	239 m (784 ft)	57
1967-1972	Toronto-Dominion Centre	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	223 m (732 ft)	56
1964-1967	Tour de la Bourse	Montreal	Quebec	Canada	190 m (620 ft)	47
1962-1964	Royal Bank Tower	Montreal	Quebec	Canada	188 m (617 ft)	47 (originally 44)
1962	CIBC Building	Montreal	Quebec	Canada	187 m (614 ft)	45	Tour CIBC
1931-1962	Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	145 m (476 ft)	34

Tallest buildings in the Empire

Years	Building (original name)	City	Region	Country	Height	Floors	Image
1930-1931	Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	145 m (476 ft)	34
1929-1930	Royal York Hotel	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	124 m (407 ft)	28
1928-1929	Royal Bank Building	Montreal	Quebec	Canada	119 m (390 ft)	22	Royal Bank Building
1915-1928	Royal Bank Building	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	91 m (299 ft)	20	Old Royal Bank Building
1912-1915	Canadian Pacific Building	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	85m (279 ft)	15	Canadian Pacific Building
1912	Sun Tower	Vancouver	British Columbia	Canada	82 m (269 ft)	17
1910-1912	Dominion Building	Vancouver	British Columbia	Canada	53 m (174 ft)	14	Dominion Building
1905-1910	Trader's Bank Building	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	???	15