Which is Italy's tallest skyscraper? Here's a list of the 10 tallest Italian buildings, although Italian skyscrapers cannot compare, in any way now, with the world’s tallest skyscrapers: The unreachable Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, is 829 metres tall, tailed, from a certain distance, by the Shanghai Tower, which reaches 632 metres into the sky. Italian skyscrapers are quite small in comparison.
Italian skyscrapers: The Tallest 10
Italy, too, can boast really tall buildings that, up to just a decade ago, shone internationally. Let's just take Milan's "Pirellone", built in 1960. At the time, it was Europe's tallest reinforced concrete skyscraper, also ranking third, then, at a global level. Today, that record has been beaten, also on the Italian scene. In fact, the Pirelli skyscraper also slid back beyond the Top 10 Italian tallest skyscrapers, surpassed by more recent buildings.
Here's the ranking of Italy's tallest skyscrapers, form the first to the tenth.
UniCredit Tower
Italy's tallest building is known in Italy as the "Torre UniCredit", and internationally as Unicredit Tower. Standing at 231 metres in height, this very recent construction, with its very tall spire, has already become a symbol of Milan. Completed in 2012, and inaugurated in 2014, it stands in the Centro Direzionale di Milano area, overlooking the extremely modern Gae Aulenti Square. The UniCredit HQ, holding 4,000 employees, is immediately recognizable thanks to its thin-looking spire. It was erected, piece after piece, on October 15, 2011, with a very powerful helicopter. The spire, just by itself, measures 80.5 metres. Designed by architect Cesar Pelli, and built by Hines Italia, a global real estate investment, development and management firm, the UniCredit Tower is part of the "Porta Nuova" project.
Allianz Tower
Italy's second tallest building is also located in Milan. It's the Allianz Tower, completed in 2015, with a height of 209.2 metres. If we also include the tall antenna surmounting it, this skyscraper actually reaches an overall height of 249 metres. Also called Isozaki Tower, as it was designed by the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, in collaboration with the Italian architect Andrea Maffei, this is the Italian building with the greatest number of storeys: 50 in total. Despite its gigantic height, the Allianz Tower does not stand by itself. In fact, the structure is just the first skyscraper of the ambitious CityLife project. Before the German insurance company Allianz bought it, it was thought to be destined to host the Assicurazioni Generali headquarters.
Piedmont Region Skyscraper
In reality, this skyscraper is still among those being built in Italy, as it has not yet been completed. Works started in November 2011, and due for completion by 2020. Various legal litigations slowed things down, among other things, involving functionaries of the Region and directors of the company involved. At the end of the works, the building will host the headquarters of the Region of Piedmont, except for the Regional Council. It was designed by architect Massimo Fuksas. When finished, it will reach 205 metres in height.
Hadid Tower
This the second tallest skyscraper of the CityLife project: This is Italy's fourth tallest skyscraper, and we are back in Milan. The name comes from the Anglo-Iraqi designed, Zaha Hadid. Still, the building, in time, also won itself two other names, "Lo Storto" (that in Italian means "The Bent one"), for its particular shape, and "Torri Generali", being the Generali Group headquarters. Its, in overall, 177 metres, but with the "Generali" sign at its highest point, it actually touches 192 metres. It was inaugurated during Spring 2019. The way the building twists is very intriguing. This can clearly be seen at its base, to gradually slowly attenuate after.
Intesa Sanpaolo Skyscraper
We are once agin in Turin, with Italy's tallest skyscraper, the Intesa Sanpaolo one. With its 167.25 metres of height, it is Turin's third tallest building, after the previously mentioned Piedmont Region one and, obviously, the Mole Antonelliana one. The archistar who designed it, Renzo Piano, purposely designed it to be 25 metres shorter than the Mole. Completed and inaugurated in 2015, it was named the most eco-friendly skyscraper in Europe.
Lombardy Building
The building was built in 2019, in Milan, to be 161 metres high. In reality, it's a building complex that also includes a tall skyscraper. In 2012, it won the title of Europe's best skyscraper from the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (Ctbuh).
Solaria Tower
This 143-metre tall skyscraper, inaugurated in 2013, is also located in Milan. Despite just ranking seventh among Italy's tallest skyscrapers, the Solaria Tower, ranks first among Italy's tallest residential buildings. Just like the UniCredit Tower, it is part of the Porta Nuova Project. It now stands where once stood Milan's Porta Nuova Station. The tower includes 102 apartments, some of which on 2 or 3 storeys.
Diamond Tower
Milan's Centro Direzionale also hosts the Diamond Tower, also part of the Porta Nuova Project. This 140-metre building was built between 2010 and 2012. The building really stands out for its diamond-shaped structure. On its sides, there are two lower buildings which are purposely called "Diamantini" (Little Diamonds).
Telecom Tower
Naples, a city with many skyscrapers, hosts the Telecom Tower, which ranks ninth in the list. If we consider that, by definition, a skyscraper is a building taller than 100 metres, Naples is the second city in Italy with the most skyscrapers, with a total of 8, trailing just behind Milan, which has 15 of them. The Telecom Tower is 129 metres tall. Built between 1988 and 1995, until 2010, it was Italy's tallest skyscraper.
Pontina Tower
The Pontina Tower, in tenth position, closes the ranking. With a height of 128 metres, it was built between 2007 and 2010 in Latina, a city in the Latium region. The building, if we also include the antenna, measures 151 metres in height.
