Skyscrapers In Manchester

This list of the tallest buildings and structures in Greater Manchester ranks buildings in Greater Manchester, England, by height. Greater Manchester is the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United Kingdom and the largest in Northern England, with a population of over 2.5 million. Greater Manchester's tall buildings are primarily located in the City of Manchester and Salford, who border each other along the River Irwell.

Since the late 2010s, Manchester's skyline has been undergoing a major high-rise boom, going from having only three buildings above in 2017 to 26 towers as of June 2025; a further six towers above 100 m are under construction. This is the largest number of high-rises in any metropolitan area in the United Kingdom besides London. The tallest building in Manchester is the South Tower of Deansgate Square, which was built in 2020 to a height of 201 m (656 ft). It is the tallest building in the United Kingdom outside of London.

History and future development

The first proposed skyscraper in Manchester was the tall Quay Street Tower. Envisioned to be completed in 1948, it would have been the tallest tower in Europe. The proposal was rejected and said to be inconsiderate, as much of the city was still rebuilding after the Manchester Blitz of the Second World War.

Prior to Greater Manchester's creation as a ceremonial county in 1974, the first tall building boom in Manchester and Salford occurred in the 1960s and 1970s, with notable buildings including the tall CIS Tower, which became the tallest building in the United Kingdom when constructed in 1962, and the tall City Tower in 1965. The following year, the tall City Central tower overtook Salford Cathedral as the tallest building in Salford since 1848.

Through the 1980s and 1990s, few significant proposals came to fruition. However, there has been a renewed interest in skyscrapers in both Manchester and Salford in the 21st century, with a number of proposals being brought forward. In 2006, Beetham Tower became the tallest building in the United Kingdom outside London and the first to reach a height of over , making it also the first official skyscraper outside London.

MediaCityUK in Salford Quays has also been at the forefront of development in the last 15 years with a number of towers being completed. These include the tall Blue, which was the tallest building in Salford Quays from 2010 until it was surpassed by the tall Eda in 2023, the X1 Media City collection of four tall towers and the tall TheHeart.

In 2018, Deansgate Square South Tower in Manchester became the only skyscraper in the United Kingdom outside London to reach a height of over . South Tower is due to be surpassed by the end of the decade by The Lighthouse, a tall skyscraper, Regent Park Ordsall Lane Tower 6, a tall skyscraper in Ordsall facing Great Jackson Street and Nobu Manchester, a 246 m (807 ft) tall skyscraper in the Central Business District.

Also in 2018, the tall Anaconda Cut became the tallest building in Salford and the first building in Salford to reach a height of over 100 m. It was surpassed in 2023 by the tall Cortland at Colliers Yard, the tallest tower in Salford as of 2025.

Unlike most major cities in the United Kingdom, there are no height restrictions on city centre high-rises in Manchester. If all future proposals come to fruition, Greater Manchester could contain nearly 400 buildings over tall, as well as 73 high-rises above and 26 skyscrapers above . Each of these figures are substantially higher than anywhere else in the United Kingdom outside of London.

Central Manchester is the predominant location for tall proposals, with 54 buildings over either built, under construction or proposed, along with a further 18 being built, under construction or proposed in Salford, immediately to the west of central Manchester.

Castlefield, which contains the Trinity Islands and Deansgate Square skyscraper developments, and Greengate are the two areas with the biggest collection of skyscrapers in Greater Manchester either built, under construction or proposed over tall. Both areas are part of wider masterplans to expand central Manchester and Salford out southwards and westwards respectively, with amenities such as new green areas and schools to enable urban living.

The northern side of central Manchester also contains a number of office and residential developments either completed or, as of 2025, under construction as part of the £800 million NOMA development. Significant completed projects within NOMA include the tall One Angel Square office building, and the tall Angel Gardens residential tower. These buildings will be joined by the Angel Meadow development, which will deliver three new residential towers including the tall Angel Meadow Park and Angel Square office towers, and the Gas Works development which will deliver nine separate buildings ranging from eight to 34 storeys.

List: Completed structures

This list ranks structurally complete buildings and free-standing structures in Greater Manchester that stand at least tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details but does not include antenna masts.

An equals sign (=) following a rank indicates the same height between two or more buildings. The "Year" column indicates the year in which a building was completed. Buildings that have been demolished are not included.

List: Under construction, approved and proposed

Under construction

This lists buildings that are under construction in Greater Manchester and are planned to rise at least . Under construction buildings that have already been topped out are listed above.

Approved

This lists buildings that are approved for construction in Greater Manchester and are planned to rise at least . If approved projects do not start construction within five years of their approval date they are assumed to be no longer active and considered 'unbuilt' unless further information is available.

Proposed

This lists buildings that are proposed for construction in Greater Manchester and are planned to rise at least . If proposed projects are not approved within five years of their proposal date they are assumed to be no longer active and considered 'unbuilt', unless further information is available.

List: Unbuilt

Unbuilt

This lists proposals for the construction of buildings in Greater Manchester that were planned to rise at least , for which planning permission was rejected or which were otherwise withdrawn.

Demolished

This lists buildings in Greater Manchester that were at least 50 metres (164 ft) tall and have since been demolished.

Timeline

Timeline of tallest buildings and structures

After a period after the 1960s building boom where few new significant buildings were built in Greater Manchester, the early 21st century has seen a long list of proposals meaning the skyline has been transformed in recent decades. The first towers over were the CIS Tower and the City Tower, the former of which kept the title of tallest building in Greater Manchester for 44 years until the Beetham Tower was completed in 2006. In 2018, Deansgate Square South Tower became the tallest building in Greater Manchester and the tallest in the United Kingdom outside London.

Future tallest

This lists the top 23 buildings in order of height in Greater Manchester that are either completed, under construction, approved or proposed. The imminent transformation of the Manchester and Salford skylines is made clear with only six of the top 23 buildings already completed, with three under construction, five approved, and nine proposed as of April 2025.

Total buildings by borough

Each building is only included once e.g. Deansgate South Tower is included in the ≥200m column but not in the ≥150m column.

''Updated 11 June 2025''

See also

* List of tallest buildings in the United Kingdom
* List of tallest buildings in Europe
* List of tallest buildings

References

External links

{{Portal bar, Greater Manchester

Greater Manchester
Tallest