‘World’s tallest skyscraper’ under construction and could be finished in just two years

Work continues on the Jeddah Tower,which is set to surpass Dubai’s Burj Khalifa as the world’s tallest building in 2028 (Picture: Reuters)

At just over half a mile tall,the Burj Khalifa has stood proud as the world’s tallest skyscraper since 2009.

But the Dubai behemoth’s long-held record is looking set to be surpassed by another supertall skyscraper in neighbouring Saudi Arabia.

The Jeddah Tower,currently under construction in the nation’s second-largest city of the same name,is already more than half the height of the Burj Khalifa,coming in at 430m and currently boasting 107 floors.

At its full height,the tower is set to smash the 1000m barrier – a world first for a manmade structure.

The ambitious project was conceived by American architect Adam Smith,who was also the brainchild of its Emirati rival.

Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud,the billionaire owner of backer Kingdom Holding Company and grandson of the first Saudi king Abdulaziz,completed an inspection of the site last month.

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.An artist’s impression of Jeddah Tower,which will have 167 occupied floors and a round observation ‘sky terrace’ deck (Picture: AS+GG)‘I met with the work teams at Jeddah Tower and saw the progress in person. We have reached a height of 430 meters out of 1000+ m,Praise be to God,the work continues,and we will complete the tallest tower in the world’,he wrote in his latest update.He added in a separate post: ‘The numbers clearly tell the story.’

How tall will the Jeddah Tower be?

At a projected full height of 1000m,or 3281ft,the Jeddah Tower will be the tallest manmade structure in the world.It will surpass the current record holder,the Burj Khalifa,by at least 180m – but it will only have four more occupied floors than the current record-holder.The skyscraper would also stand taller than England’s highest natural peak,Scafell Pike,which reaches 978m above sea level.The mixed-use development is currently on schedule for completion by August 2028,although the project has experienced several setbacks relating to its complex structure.In fact,spades first went into the ground back in 2013; however,the build was put on hold indefinitely in 2017 after several senior executives became embroiled in a corruption scandal.At its full height,the Jeddah Tower will top out at at least 1,008 metres,higher than Britain’s highest natural peak (Picture: AS+GG)The project was revived in 2023,and construction picked up again in January 2025,with some 5,200 workers currently on site.To reach the extreme height,contractors will need to pump concrete one kilometre up using a single system – an unprecedented feat.According to original plans,the building will have 56 elevators – seven of which will be double-decker – to whizz people up to each of the 167 occupied floors.Saudi Arabia is no stranger to mega infrastructure projects,some of which have yet to come off or have been abandoned.These include the shelved development The Line,a 170km long ‘smart city’,which was part of the planned Neom city on the tip of the Red Sea.

What will be in the Jeddah Tower?

Forming the centrepiece of the Jeddah Economic City project,a 57million square foot development 20km from Jeddah’s city centre,the colossal tower is set to be mixed residential and commercial use.At its heart will be a luxury Four Seasons hotel,as well as office space,and apartments for rent.It will also be home to the world’s highest observation deck on the 157th floor,known as the sky terrace and set to boast spectacular views of the Red Sea.Workers will have to pump concrete some 1,000m in the airusing a single system,a feat which has never been attempted before (Picture: Amel Pain/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)Above the highest occupied floor on the 167th level will be maintenance space housed in the building’s trademark spire.As well as piercing the sky,Jeddah Tower also stretches into the ground with three basements and foundations reaching 105 metres below the surface – itself the height of a mini skyscraper.Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at .For more stories like this,check our news page.