The 20 most expensive skyscrapers built in the last 30 years

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.

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

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

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

Source: CNN

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

Source: ArchDaily

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

http://instagr.am/p/BgtLmRrnCBL

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

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):

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

Source: EU Business

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

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

Source: Gizmodo

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

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.

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.

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

Source: The Las Vegas Review Journal

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

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

Source: World Atlas

The view from the higher floors is stunning.

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.

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.

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.

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:

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

Source: Bloomberg

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

Source: Bloomberg

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

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.

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.

Source: The Guardian

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

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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