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How many steps to the top of Eiffel Tower (summit)?

Steps to the top of Eiffel Tower (summit)
1,665
Reaching the summit at 276 m, using the service stairs above the second floor — closed to the public · not climbable by the public

This is the number people mean when they say "the Eiffel Tower has 1,665 steps", and it is not a climb anyone can book: above the second floor the staircase is a narrow service spiral, and the only public route to the summit is the lift. The count itself is unstable. The tower's own material has given 1,665; other published figures are 1,710 and 1,792, the differences arising from the steps inside the summit cabin and up to the antenna. The spiral section removed during the 1980s renovation was cut into pieces and sold at auction, so several museums own a few dozen genuine Eiffel Tower steps.

The numbers

Steps
1,665
Reaches
the summit at 276 m, using the service stairs above the second floor — closed to the public
Public access
Not climbable by the public
Where
Paris, France
Height climbed
276 m — 906 ft
Average rise per step
166 mm

This count describes a stairwell the public cannot use. Published step figures for famous structures very often refer to service or emergency stairs — worth knowing before planning a visit around one.

Published counts for the same structure routinely disagree by five to ten per cent, and nearly always for one of three reasons: whether intermediate landings count as steps, whether the final platform step counts, and where the climb is deemed to start. The figure here says what it reaches.

How it compares

Only the ones marked open to climb can actually be walked.

Taipei 101 2,046 steps
CN Tower 1,776 steps
Ostankino Tower 1,704 steps
Eiffel Tower (summit) 1,665 steps
Empire State Building 1,576 steps
The STRAT Tower 1,455 steps
Kotohira-gū (Konpira-san) 1,368 steps
Eiffel Tower (summit) ranks 9 of 56 here by step count.
Structure Steps Reaches Access
Taipei 101 2,046 the 91st-floor outdoor observatory Restricted — events or permit only
CN Tower 1,776 the main observation level at 342 m; 2,579 steps reach the SkyPod at 447 m Restricted — events or permit only
Ostankino Tower 1,704 the observation deck at 337 m, via the emergency staircase Not climbable by the public
Eiffel Tower (summit) 1,665 the summit at 276 m, using the service stairs above the second floor — closed to the public Not climbable by the public
Empire State Building 1,576 the 86th-floor observatory, via the emergency stairwell Restricted — events or permit only
The STRAT Tower 1,455 the observation deck at 260 m Restricted — events or permit only
Kotohira-gū (Konpira-san) 1,368 the inner shrine, Okusha; 785 steps reach the main shrine Open to climb

Common questions

How many steps to the top of Eiffel Tower (summit)?
1,665, reaching the summit at 276 m, using the service stairs above the second floor — closed to the public.
Can the public climb Eiffel Tower (summit)?
Not climbable by the public.
How high is that climb?
276 m, about 906 ft, which averages 166 mm per step.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Typical range compiled from manufacturer specifications — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked