---
title: "How many steps up Space Needle? 848"
description: "848 steps up Space Needle in Seattle, United States. Restricted — events or permit only. What that count reaches, the height climbed, and how it compares."
url: https://atoneplace.net/how-many-steps/space-needle/
site: "At One Place"
---

# How many steps to the top of Space Needle?

**Steps to the top of Space Needle: 848**

Reaching the observation deck at 158 m · restricted — events or permit only

The Base 2 Space climb, run for a cancer charity, is the one occasion each year the staircase opens; the rest of the time the lift takes 41 seconds. The 848 steps are the count published for the event. The structure was built for the 1962 World's Fair in under a year. Its foundation holds as much steel as the tower above it, which is why it survived the 2001 Nisqually earthquake without damage.

## The numbers

- **Steps:** 848
- **Reaches:** the observation deck at 158 m
- **Public access:** Restricted — events or permit only
- **Where:** Seattle, United States
- **Height climbed:** 158 m — 518 ft
- **Average rise per step:** 186 mm

## What the climb is like

Annual charity climb, usually in autumn. Most people take 10-20 minutes.

> These steps are not open on an ordinary visit. Access is limited to organised events, races or permit holders.

> 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.*

- Gateway Arch: 1,076 steps
- Berliner Fernsehturm: 986 steps
- Washington Monument: 897 steps
- Space Needle: 848 steps
- Ulm Minster: 768 steps
- Eiffel Tower: 674 steps
- Tokyo Tower: 600 steps

*Space Needle ranks 19 of 56 here by step count.*

| Structure | Steps | Reaches | Access |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Gateway Arch | 1,076 | the observation area at the top of the arch, via the emergency stairs — no public access | Not climbable by the public |
| Berliner Fernsehturm | 986 | the sphere at 203 m, via the emergency staircase — no public access | Not climbable by the public |
| Washington Monument | 897 | the observation level at 152 m — stairs closed to the public | Not climbable by the public |
| Space Needle | 848 | the observation deck at 158 m | Restricted — events or permit only |
| Ulm Minster | 768 | the highest viewing platform at 143 m, in the world's tallest church steeple | Open to climb |
| Eiffel Tower | 674 | the second floor, at 115 m — the highest point the public can reach on foot | Open to climb |
| Tokyo Tower | 600 | the Main Deck at 150 m | Open to climb |

## Common questions

### How many steps to the top of Space Needle?

848, reaching the observation deck at 158 m.

### Can the public climb Space Needle?

Restricted — events or permit only. Annual charity climb, usually in autumn. Most people take 10-20 minutes.

### How high is that climb?

158 m, about 518 ft, which averages 186 mm per step.

## Related pages

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- [How many steps up Eiffel Tower (summit)?](https://atoneplace.net/how-many-steps/eiffel-tower-summit/)
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- [How many steps up One World Trade Center?](https://atoneplace.net/how-many-steps/one-world-trade-center/)

## Sources

- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place (/about/)