Tallest Roller Coaster
Amusement parks often compete to build the tallest, fastest, and longest rides to attract thrill seekers and boost overall park attendance. Ranked by height, speed, length, and number of inversions, roller coasters often became the focal point for competing parks. Computer-simulated models led to new innovations that produced more intense thrills while improving quality and durability. The debut of Magnum XL-200 in 1989 at Cedar Point introduced the first complete-circuit roller coaster to exceed 200 feet (61 m), marking a pivot point in the industry. The new era, sometimes referred to as the Coaster Wars, saw increasing competition as parks sought to be the latest to break world records, with some only lasting a year or less.
The pace of competition eventually slowed, however. Record holder Kingda Ka, the tallest coaster in the world at 456 feet (139 m), has held onto its record since 2005. Other notable coasters include Formula Rossa, the world's fastest, which reaches a top speed of 149 mph (240 km/h), Steel Dragon 2000, the world's longest, measuring 8,133 feet (2,479 m), and The Smiler which features fourteen inversions.
Key
Key | Meaning |
---|---|
1 | Record holder |
** | Under construction |
* | Still exists but not operating |
Height rankings
Tallest steel roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Height | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
** | Falcon's Flight | Six Flags Qiddiya | ![]() |
640 ft (195.072 m) | Intamin | |
1 | Kingda Ka | Six Flags Great Adventure | ![]() |
456 ft (139 m) | Intamin | May 2005 – present |
2 | Top Thrill 2 | Cedar Point | ![]() |
420 ft (130 m) | Intamin/Zamperla | May 2003 – May 2005 |
3 | Superman: Escape from Krypton | Six Flags Magic Mountain | ![]() |
415 ft (126 m) | Intamin | March 1997 – May 2003 |
4 | Red Force | Ferrari Land | ![]() |
367.3 ft (112.0 m) | Intamin | — |
5 | Fury 325 | Carowinds | ![]() |
325 ft (99 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
6 | Steel Dragon 2000 | Nagashima Spa Land | ![]() |
318.3 ft (97.0 m) | Morgan | — |
7 | Millennium Force | Cedar Point | ![]() |
310 ft (94 m) | Intamin | — |
8 | Leviathan | Canada's Wonderland | ![]() |
306 ft (93 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
9 | Project 305 | Kings Dominion | ![]() |
305 ft (93 m) | Intamin | — |
10 | Orion | Kings Island | ![]() |
287 ft (87 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
Longest steel roller coaster drops
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop length | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
** | Falcon's Flight | Six Flags Qiddiya | ![]() |
519 ft (158 m) | Intamin | |
1 | Kingda Ka | Six Flags Great Adventure | ![]() |
418 ft (127 m) | Intamin | May 2005 – present |
2 | Top Thrill 2 | Cedar Point | ![]() |
400 ft (120 m) | Intamin/Zamperla | May 2003 – May 2005 |
3 | Red Force | Ferrari Land | ![]() |
~345 ft (105 m) | Intamin | — |
4 | Superman: Escape from Krypton | Six Flags Magic Mountain | ![]() |
328.1 ft (100.0 m) | Intamin | March 1997 – May 2003 |
5 | Fury 325 | Carowinds | ![]() |
320 ft (98 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
6 | Steel Dragon 2000 | Nagashima Spa Land | ![]() |
306.8 ft (93.5 m) | D. H. Morgan Manufacturing | — |
7 | Leviathan | Canada's Wonderland | ![]() |
306 ft (93 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
8 | Project 305 | Kings Dominion | ![]() |
300 ft (91 m) | Intamin | — |
Millennium Force | Cedar Point | ![]() |
300 ft (91 m) | Intamin | — | |
Orion | Kings Island | ![]() |
300 ft (91 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | — |
Tallest wooden roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Height | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | T Express | Everland | ![]() |
183.8 ft (56.0 m) | Intamin | June 2009 – present |
Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | ![]() |
183.8 ft (56.0 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2016 – present | |
3 | El Toro | Six Flags Great Adventure | ![]() |
181 ft (55 m) | Intamin | — |
4 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
165 ft (50 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | — |
5 | Colossos - Kampf der Giganten | Heide Park | ![]() |
164 ft (50 m) | Intamin | — |
6 | The Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | ![]() |
159 ft (48 m) | The Gravity Group | — |
7 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | ![]() |
136 ft (41 m) | The Gravity Group | — |
8 | Wodan Timbur Coaster | Europa-Park | ![]() |
131.2 ft (40.0 m) | Great Coasters International | — |
9 | Le Monstre | La Ronde | ![]() |
130.9 ft (39.9 m) | Martin & Vleminckx | July 1985 – March 1990 |
10 | American Eagle | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
127 ft (39 m) | Intamin | May 1981 – July 1985 |
Longest wooden roller coaster drops
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop length | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
180 ft (55 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2014 – present |
2 | El Toro | Six Flags Great Adventure | ![]() |
176 ft (54 m) | Intamin | June 2009 – June 2014 |
3 | Outlaw Run | Silver Dollar City | ![]() |
162 ft (49 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | — |
4 | Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | ![]() |
160.8 ft (49.0 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | — |
5 | Colossos - Kampf der Giganten | Heide Park | ![]() |
159.1 ft (48.5 m) | Intamin | — |
6 | The Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | ![]() |
154 ft (47 m) | The Gravity Group | — |
7 | T Express | Everland | ![]() |
150.9 ft (46.0 m) | Intamin | — |
8 | The Boss | Six Flags St. Louis | ![]() |
150 ft (46 m) | Custom Coasters International | — |
9 | American Eagle | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
147 ft (45 m) | Intamin | May 1981 – May 1991 |
10 | The Beast | Kings Island | ![]() |
141 ft (43 m) | Kings Island | April 1979 – May 1981 |
Gallery
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Speed rankings
Fastest steel roller coasters
Fastest wooden roller coasters
Gallery
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Length rankings
Longest steel roller coasters
Longest wooden roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Length | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | The Beast | Kings Island | ![]() |
7,361 ft (2,244 m) | Kings Island | April 1979 – present |
2 | The Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | ![]() |
6,442 ft (1,964 m) | The Gravity Group | — |
3 | T Express | Everland | ![]() |
5,383.8 ft (1,641.0 m) | Intamin | — |
4 | Shivering Timbers | Michigan's Adventure | ![]() |
5,383 ft (1,641 m) | Custom Coasters International | — |
5 | Jupiter | Kijima Amusement Park | ![]() |
5,249 ft (1,600 m) | Intamin | — |
6 | Python in Bamboo Forest | Nanchang Wanda Theme Park | ![]() |
5,111 ft (1,558 m) | Great Coasters International | — |
7 | Wood Coaster | Knight Valley | ![]() |
4,817 ft (1,468 m) | Great Coasters International | — |
8 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | ![]() |
4,746 ft (1,447 m) | The Gravity Group | — |
9 | Boulder Dash | Lake Compounce | ![]() |
4,725 ft (1,440 m) | Custom Coasters International | — |
10 | American Eagle | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
4,650 ft (1,420 m) | Intamin | — |
Gallery
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Inversion rankings
This listing contains all types of roller coaster inversions.
Steel roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Inversions | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | The Smiler | Alton Towers | ![]() |
14 | Gerstlauer | May 2013 – present |
** | Eleventh Roller Coaster | Great Xingdong Tourist World | ![]() |
11 | Hebei Zhongye | — |
2 | 10 Inversion Roller Coaster | Chimelong Paradise | ![]() |
10 | Intamin | February 2006 – May 2013 |
Altair | Cinecittà World | ![]() |
Intamin | — | ||
Colossus | Thorpe Park | ![]() |
Intamin | March 2002 – May 2013 | ||
Crazy Coaster | Locajoy Holiday | ![]() |
Intamin | — | ||
Velikolukskiy Myasokombinat-2 | Wonder Island | ![]() |
Intamin | — | ||
Sik | Flamingo Land | ![]() |
Intamin | — | ||
* | LightSpeed | Wonderland Eurasia | ![]() |
10 | Intamin | — |
8 | Avalancha | Xetulul | ![]() |
8 | Intamin | — |
Dragon Khan | PortAventura Park | ![]() |
Bolliger & Mabillard | May 1995 – March 2002 | ||
* | Steel Curtain | Kennywood | ![]() |
8 | S&S - Sansei Technologies | — |
** | unknown (formerly known as Monte Makaya) | Mirabilandia | ![]() |
8 | Intamin | January 1998 – March 2002 |
Wooden roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Inversions | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Outlaw Run | Silver Dollar City | ![]() |
3 | Rocky Mountain Construction | March 2013 – present |
Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | ![]() |
Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2016 – present | ||
3 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
2 | Rocky Mountain Construction | — |
4 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | ![]() |
1 | The Gravity Group | — |
Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Ningbo | ![]() |
Martin & Vleminckx Rides | — | ||
Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Wuhu | ![]() |
Martin & Vleminckx Rides | — | ||
Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Jinan | ![]() |
Martin & Vleminckx Rides | — | ||
Mine Blower | Fun Spot America: Kissimmee | ![]() |
The Gravity Group | — |
Drop angle rankings
Steel roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop angle | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | TMNT Shellraiser | Nickelodeon Universe | ![]() |
121.5° | Gerstlauer | October 2019 – present |
2 | Takabisha | Fuji-Q Highland | ![]() |
121.0° | Gerstlauer | 15 July 2011 – October 2019 |
3 | Green Lantern Coaster | Warner Bros. Movie World | ![]() |
120.5° | S&S Worldwide | — |
4 | Crazy Bird | Happy Valley Tianjin | ![]() |
120.0° | S&S Worldwide | — |
5 | Cannibal | Lagoon | ![]() |
116.0° | ART Engineering GmbH | — |
6 | Timber Drop | Fraispertuis City | ![]() |
113.0° | S&S Worldwide | 2 July 2011 – 14 July 2011 |
7 | Mumbo Jumbo | Flamingo Land Resort | ![]() |
112.0° | S&S Worldwide | July 2009 – 1 July 2011 |
8 | Steel Hawg | Indiana Beach | ![]() |
111.0° | S&S Worldwide | July 2008 – July 2009 |
9 | Defiance | Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park | ![]() |
102.3° | Gerstlauer | — |
10 | Monster | Adventureland | ![]() |
101.0° | Gerstlauer | — |
Toutatis | Parc Astérix | ![]() |
Intamin | — |
Wooden roller coasters
Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop angle | Manufacturer | Record held |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Switchback | ZDT's Amusement Park | ![]() |
87.0° | Gravitykraft Corporation | October 2015 – present |
2 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | ![]() |
85.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2014 – October 2015 |
3 | Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | ![]() |
83.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | — |
4 | Outlaw Run | Silver Dollar City | ![]() |
81.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | March 2013 – June 2014 |
5 | T Express | Everland | ![]() |
77.0° | Intamin | March 2008 – March 2013 |
6 | El Toro | Six Flags Great Adventure | ![]() |
76.0° | Intamin | June 2006 – March 2008 |
7 | Balder | Liseberg | ![]() |
70.0° | Intamin | April 2003 – June 2006 |
8 | Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | ![]() |
66.0° | Gravitykraft Corporation | — |
9 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | ![]() |
65.0° | Gravitykraft Corporation | — |
Cú Chulainn | Emerald Park | ![]() |
Gravitykraft Corporation | — |