Over the last few decades, skyscrapers’ heights – and thus their costs – have continued to climb.

Business Insider rounded up the most expensive towers built in the last 30 years, defining a skyscraper as a building that measures at least 500 feet tall. As you will see, not all skyscrapers feature a slender design.

Check them out below, in order from lowest to highest construction cost.


In Hong Kong, the Bank of China completed its 1,204-foot-tall headquarters in 1990.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

The $1 billion building thins toward the peak and features sharp edges.

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The Petronas Twin Towers, located in Malaysia, was constructed in 1999.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

The 1,483-foot-tall skyscrapers reportedly cost approximately $1 billion total and contain 88 floors each, made up of offices and retail stores.

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Source: CNN


In 2006, Indian business magnate Mukesh D. Ambani built the 27-floor Antilia skyscraper, which serves as his private residence.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

At $1 billion, Antilia is the world's most expensive residential property behind Buckingham Palace. It's also designed to survive a magnitude 8 earthquake.

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http://instagr.am/p/BMInQ0rBTFV

Source: Business Insider


Located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom Centre cost approximately $1 billion to build. Construction of the 990-foot skyscraper wrapped up in 2002.

Foto: sourceAndrew V Marcus / Shutterstock.com

The second floor features a shopping mall, bank, and mosque, designated only for women. Designed by Minnesota-based firm Ellerbe Necket, the Kingdom Centre also includes a hotel, offices, apartments, and a 184-foot skybridge.

Foto: sourceKingdom Centre

http://instagr.am/p/BN9Ax19gdO5


The 1,070-foot-high, $1.1 billion Salesforce Tower is the tallest and most expensive skyscraper in San Francisco. It opened in May 2018.

Source: Business Insider


The cloud-computing company Salesforce occupies 30 floors of the office tower. Other tenants include WeWork, Bain & Company, Accenture, and CBRE, a real-estate group.

Foto: sourceMelia Robinson/Business Insider

Completed in 2014, Singapore's CapitaGreen tower cost an estimated $1.4 billion.

Foto: sourceCapitaLand/Twitter

Source: ArchDaily


Also known as Market Street Tower, the 794-foot-tall office building's centerpiece is a facade with living plants.

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http://instagr.am/p/BgtLmRrnCBL


The Burj Khalifa in Dubai cost approximately $1.5 billion to build. Construction lasted from 2004 to 2009.

Foto: sourceReuters/Matthias Seifert

Source: Arabian Business


Including the antennae, the tower stands 2,717 feet tall, making it the tallest building in the world. Inside, there are residential apartments, eight hotels, shops, restaurants, and offices. Here's the view from the observation deck (also the world's tallest):

Foto: sourceCourtesy of ‘At the Top, Burj Khalifa SKY’

The Seat of the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt, Germany cost $1.25 billion to construct in 2013.

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Source: EU Business


The twin skyscraper houses the headquarters of the ECB, the central bank for the euro.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

London's glass Shard, completed in 2012 for $1.5 billion, is a 95-story skyscraper.

Foto: sourceShutterstock/William Perugini

Source: Gizmodo


The tallest building in the UK, it features residences, a hotel, restaurants, offices, a business school, shops, a clinic, and an observatory.

Foto: sourceAqua Shard

Source: The-Shard.com


Stretching 101 stories, the aptly named Taipei 101 was built in 2004. It hovers over Taiwan and cost $1.8 billion.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: Business Insider


The skyscraper features a giant sphere painted gold, which spans its 87th through 92nd floors. The other levels contain offices, shops, and a restaurant.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Built in 2007, the $2.05 billion Palazzo Casino is on the Las Vegas Strip.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: The Las Vegas Review Journal


Italian Renaissance architecture influenced the hotel and casino's design.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Constructed in Dubai in 2012, the $2.17 billion Princess Tower houses shops and 763 luxury condos.

Foto: sourceThe Princess Tower

Source: World Atlas


The view from the higher floors is stunning.

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http://instagr.am/p/Bi9t2slBjls


The Venetian is a luxury hotel, mall, and casino in Macau. Built in 2005, the 738-foot resort cost $2.4 billion.

Foto: sourceken wilson lee/Flickr

Source: The New York Times


In the center of the mall, there's a manmade "river" (modeled after the famous one in Venice), where shoppers can take gondola rides.

Foto: sourceTristan Schmurr/Flickr

In Manhattan's Financial District, 3 World Trade Center opened in June 2018. The $2.75 billion, 80-floor tower features a striking steel facade.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: USA Today


3 World Trade Center's lobby also has the unique ability to change colors, which the building's management controls. Here's what it looks like bathed in green light:

Foto: sourceAP

On New Year's Day 2018, the Lotte World Tower opened in Seoul, South Korea. Stretching an astounding 1,819 feet, it's the fifth tallest building in the world.

Foto: sourcePixabay

The 123-story skyscraper cost approximately $3.6 billion. It boasts the highest swimming pool and the highest glass floor at the top of a building.

Foto: sourceGetty Images

Source: Bloomberg


With a price tag of $3.8 billion, One World Trade Center opened in 2012. Located in New York City, it's next to the site of the original WTC, which is now a memorial for the victims of the September 11 attacks.

Foto: The One World Trade Center tower (L) in New York, November 8, 2013.sourcePhil Dolby/Flickr

Source: New York magazine


In the elevator going up to the observation deck, there's a timelapse projection that shows what Manhattan has looked like every year since 1500.

Foto: Part of a time-lapse projection of the New York skyline through the years is seen inside the Sky Pod Elevator on the way up to the One World Observatory observation deck on the 100th floor of the One World Trade center tower in New York.sourceMike Segar/Reuters

In 2010, a set of Las Vegas high-rises called the Cosmopolitan was built for $3.9 billion.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: Arquitectonica


One of the Cosmopolitan's main attractions is its giant glowing chandelier. There's also a casino, shops, restaurants, a theater, a gym and spa, and a convention space.

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http://instagr.am/p/BOrrr2nDxLZ


With a price tag of $4.1 billion to construct in 2005, the 614-foot-tall Wynn resort and casino sits on the Las Vegas Strip.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: Bloomberg


Here's what it looks like inside. In 2016, it started a $1.6 billion expansion, set to be finished in 2020.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: Bloomberg


Three towers make up the Marina Bay Sands Resort, which opened in 2010 in Singapore.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

With a cost of $5.7 billion, it's billed as one of the world's most expensive casino properties, though it also includes a hotel, a convention center, a mall, a museum, two theaters, seven restaurants, and a skating rink.

Foto: sourceWikipedia Commons

Source: Fast Company


At a whopping $15 billion, the Abraj Al Bait features seven towers completed from 2007 to 2012. Located in Mecca, the Saudi Arabian government owns the complex.

Foto: sourceHassan Ammar/AP

Source: The Guardian


The tallest tower (at 120 stories) features the world's largest clock face.

Foto: sourceFlickr/Gigi-dreams

Source: The Guardian


Inside, there are restaurants, a five-story shopping mall, luxury hotels and condos, and a parking garage. The towers can be seen from inside the holy mosque of Mecca, where crowds flock to pray.

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http://instagr.am/p/fCwABPkb1u