If you walk through Downtown Los Angeles and look up, your eyes are going to play tricks on you. You'll see the U.S. Bank Tower, that iconic circular crown that looks like it’s punching a hole in the clouds. Then you'll see the Wilshire Grand Center, with its sleek glass sail and a needle thin spire stretching toward the sun.
Naturally, you’d ask: what’s the tallest building in LA?
The answer is simple, but also kind of a lie. It depends on who you ask and whether or not you think a metal stick counts as a floor.
Officially, the Wilshire Grand Center holds the title. It stands at exactly 1,100 feet. But here’s the kicker: if you take away that skinny spire on top, the building actually shrinks down to about 934 feet. That makes it significantly shorter than the U.S. Bank Tower, which hits 1,018 feet at its flat, helicopter-ready roof.
The Spire Scandal: Why the Tallest Building in LA is a "Cheater"
Architecture nerds have been fighting about this since 2017. Basically, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is the group that decides these things. They have a rule: if a spire is a permanent part of the architectural design, it counts toward the height. If it’s just an antenna for radio or TV, it doesn't.
Since the Wilshire Grand’s spire was "integrated" into the design, it won the trophy.
Honestly, a lot of locals don't buy it. If you stand at the 73rd floor observation deck of the Wilshire Grand, you are looking up at the roof of the U.S. Bank Tower. It feels weird to be in the "tallest" building and have to crane your neck to see the top of your neighbor.
Why the Spire Even Exists
For decades, LA had this weird, "stupid" rule (as former Mayor Eric Garcetti called it). Every skyscraper over 75 feet had to have a flat roof for emergency helicopter landings. This is why the LA skyline used to look like a bunch of boring, rectangular boxes.
The Wilshire Grand was the first major building to break that mold. The developers convinced the city to let them use a "tactical approach" helipad—which is basically a landing spot that doesn't require the whole roof to be a table-top. This allowed them to build that sloping, "sail" shape and the famous spire.
The Top 10 Tallest Buildings in Los Angeles (The Real Rankings)
If we go by the official "spire included" numbers, here is how the skyline shakes out right now in 2026.
- Wilshire Grand Center: 1,100 feet. It’s got a massive InterContinental Hotel inside and a lobby on the 70th floor that will make your ears pop.
- U.S. Bank Tower: 1,018 feet. You might remember this as the "Library Tower." It’s the one with the outdoor glass slide attached to the side.
- Aon Center: 858 feet. A massive black monolith that dominated the skyline for years before the "supertalls" arrived.
- Two California Plaza: 750 feet. Part of the Bunker Hill revival.
- Gas Company Tower: 749 feet.
- Bank of America Plaza: 735 feet.
- 777 Tower: 725 feet. A Cesar Pelli masterpiece.
- Wells Fargo Tower: 723 feet.
- Figueroa at Wilshire: 717 feet.
- City National Tower / Paul Hastings Tower: 699 feet. These are the famous "Twin Towers" of LA.
The skyline is actually changing pretty fast. We’re seeing more residential towers like The Beaudry (695 feet) and Olympic + Hill creeping into the rankings. LA is finally moving away from just being a "place where lawyers work" and becoming a place where people actually live 50 stories up.
Is the "Tallest" Title About to Be Stolen?
There’s always a bigger fish. Or in this case, a taller pile of steel.
For a while, there were rumors of the "Angels Landing" project, which was supposed to include a tower that would dwarf everything else. Development in LA is a mess of red tape, interest rates, and environmental reports, so these projects often stall for years. As of early 2026, the Wilshire Grand still holds the crown, but the "Oceanwide Plaza" project—those three unfinished towers across from Crypto.com Arena—remains a massive, graffiti-covered reminder that building big in LA is risky business.
The "Bunker Hill" Elevation Trick
One thing most people forget is that LA isn't flat. The U.S. Bank Tower sits on Bunker Hill, which is about 60 feet higher than the ground where the Wilshire Grand stands.
Even if both buildings were the exact same height from sidewalk to tip, the U.S. Bank Tower would still look taller because it’s standing on a "pedestal" of earth. It’s like two friends taking a photo where one is standing on the curb.
Actionable Tips for Your Next DTLA Visit
If you want to experience these heights yourself, don't just stare from the sidewalk.
- Go to the 70th Floor: You can walk into the Wilshire Grand and take the high-speed elevator to the InterContinental lobby for free. The views are better than any paid observation deck.
- Check the Light Shows: The Wilshire Grand's spire and "spine" have programmable LEDs. They change colors for the Dodgers, Lakers, or Pride Month. It’s basically a 1,100-foot glow stick.
- The Best Vantage Point: For the best photo that actually shows the height difference, head over to MacArthur Park or the Echo Park Lake bridge. From that distance, you can see how the spire of the Wilshire Grand just barely pokes above the rest of the pack.
The "tallest building in LA" debate isn't ending anytime soon. Whether you side with the official spire-measured height or the "real" roof-height of the U.S. Bank Tower, there’s no denying that the Los Angeles skyline has finally grown out of its "flat-top" phase and into something world-class.