The ten tallest lighthouses in the world ranked by structural height, from the Jeddah Light down to the St Mary's Lighthouse.
Quick answer: 1. Jeddah Light, 2. Perry Memorial Monument, 3. Yokohama Marine Tower, 4. Yashiima, 5. Île Vierge Lighthouse, 6. Lanterna di Genova, 7. Cape Hatteras Light, 8. Les Éclaireurs Lighthouse, 9. Dungeness Lighthouse, 10. St. Mary's Lighthouse.
Lighthouses are iconic navigational aids that guide ships through dangerous waters. This list ranks the ten tallest lighthouses in the world by total structural height, spanning modern steel towers, historic stone constructions, and distinctive architectural landmarks. It's a reference for maritime enthusiasts, travelers, and architecture lovers. The ranking runs from tallest to shortest, so rank 1 is the tallest lighthouse.
The tallest lighthouse in the world, standing 133 meters tall in the port of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This modern concrete tower was completed in 1990 and serves as an active navigational aid for ships entering the Red Sea port.
A 107-meter monument on Lake Erie that doubles as a navigational lighthouse. It commemorates Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's victory in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812.
A 106-meter lattice tower in Yamashita Park, Yokohama, Japan. Built in 1961, it is the tallest lighthouse in the world built on a ship pier and remains a prominent city landmark.
A 106-meter lighthouse in Japan's Kagawa Prefecture, built as a commemorative tower for the 70th anniversary of the prefecture's establishment. It is one of the tallest lighthouses in Asia and serves as an active navigational aid.
The tallest traditional stone lighthouse in Europe, standing 82.5 meters tall off the coast of Brittany, France. Completed in 1902, its granite tower was built on a tiny island and remains an active aid to navigation.
The medieval Torre del Lamba was capped with a lantern in 1543 to create the iconic Genoa Lighthouse. It is the world's third-tallest stone lighthouse and the oldest standing lighthouse in the world at 77 meters.
The tallest brick lighthouse in the United States, standing 63 meters tall on North Carolina's Outer Banks. It was famously moved 880 meters inland in 1999 to protect it from coastal erosion.
A 60-meter lighthouse on the Isla de los Estados archipelago in Argentina. Its distinctive red-and-white striped tower was built in 1920 to guide ships through the treacherous waters off Tierra del Fuego.
A 58-meter lighthouse on the Dungeness headland in Kent, England. Its distinctive black-and-white bands warn ships navigating the busy English Channel, and it is one of the tallest lighthouses in the UK.
A 57-meter lighthouse on St. Mary's Island in the Baltic Sea, near the coast of Finland. It was built in 1875 and is one of the tallest traditional lighthouses in the Nordic region.
| # | Name | location | yearCompleted | type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jeddah Light | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | 1990 | Concrete tower |
| 2 | Perry Memorial Monument | Put-in-Bay, Ohio, USA | 1915 | Granite monument |
| 3 | Yokohama Marine Tower | Yokohama, Japan | 1961 | Lattice tower |
| 4 | Yashiima | Kagawa, Japan | 2008 | Steel tower |
| 5 | Île Vierge Lighthouse | Finistère, France | 1902 | Stone tower |
| 6 | Lanterna di Genova | Genoa, Italy | 1543 (as lighthouse) | Stone tower (medieval origin) |
| 7 | Cape Hatteras Light | Hatteras Island, North Carolina, USA | 1870 (moved 1999) | Brick tower |
| 8 | Les Éclaireurs Lighthouse | Tierra del Fuego, Argentina | 1920 | Concrete tower |
| 9 | Dungeness Lighthouse | Kent, England, UK | 1961 | Concrete tower |
| 10 | St. Mary's Lighthouse | Baltic Sea, Finland | 1875 | Stone tower |
Lighthouses are ranked by total structural height in meters, from the base to the top of the structure (including the lantern room), using figures from the United States Coast Guard Light List, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) List of Lights, and the Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society (ARLHS) data as compiled in Wikipedia's "List of tallest lighthouses." Only active and former navigational lighthouses recognized by maritime authorities are included; decorative towers and monuments that are not navigational aids are excluded. The ranking runs from tallest to shortest.
The Jeddah Light in Saudi Arabia is the tallest lighthouse in the world, standing 133 meters tall. It was completed in 1990 and serves the port of Jeddah on the Red Sea.
The Île Vierge lighthouse in Brittany, France, is the tallest traditional stone lighthouse in the world and the tallest in Europe, standing 82.5 meters tall. It was completed in 1902.
The Statue of Liberty served as a lighthouse from 1886 to 1902, but it was decommissioned as a navigational aid and is now classified as a national monument. If counted, it would rank near the top of this list at 93 meters.
The Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, stood approximately 100–130 meters tall, which would place it among the tallest lighthouses on this list. It was destroyed by earthquakes between the 12th and 14th centuries.