The tallest waterfalls on Earth ranked by total height, led by Venezuela's 979 m Angel Falls; a three-way tie for ninth place stretches this top ten to eleven.
Angel Falls (Salto Ángel) in Venezuela is the highest waterfall on Earth, with a total height of 979 m, including a single 807 m plunge. Tugela Falls in South Africa is second at 947 m and Tres Hermanas Falls in Peru third at 914 m. The ranking uses total height from Wikipedia's List of waterfalls by height, citing the World Waterfall Database, read 18 October 2026.
Waterfall heights are hard to pin down. Many of the tallest falls are remote, tiered and seasonal, and there is no standard way to measure them, so published heights are often estimates taken from a distance. This list ranks waterfalls by total height: the full drop from the top of the highest tier to the base of the lowest, including any cascades in between. Every figure comes from one compiled source, so the falls are measured on the same basis.
Angel Falls drops 979 m from the edge of Auyán-tepui in Venezuela's Canaima National Park, including a single uninterrupted plunge of 807 m, the longest of any waterfall. About 400 m of the total is sloping cascades and rapids below the main drop. It became known to the outside world after the US aviator Jimmie Angel flew over it on 16 November 1933.
Tugela Falls in South Africa's Drakensberg, in Royal Natal National Park, is a seasonal series of five free-leaping falls with a total height of 947 m in the source table (948 m is the official figure). A 2016 Czech survey measured 983 m, which would make it taller than Angel Falls, but that figure has not been confirmed.
Tres Hermanas Falls drops 914 m in three tiers inside Peru's Otishi National Park, near the northern fork of the Cutibireni River.
Olo'upena Falls is 900 m tall and the highest waterfall in the United States. A short, seasonal stream spills over one of the world's tallest sea cliffs on the north-east coast of Molokai, Hawaii, between the Pelekunu and Wailau valleys, and the falls can be seen only from the sea or the air.
Yumbilla Falls in Peru's Amazonas region has a total height of 896 m.
Skorga in Møre og Romsdal, Norway, has a total height of 875 m, which makes it the tallest Norwegian waterfall in the source table.
Balåifossen in Vestland county, Norway, has a total height of 850 m.
Vinnufossen, also called Vinnufallet, is an 845 m tiered horsetail waterfall just east of Sunndalsøra in Møre og Romsdal, Norway. The Vinnu river, fed by the Vinnufonna glacier, flows down from the Vinnufjellet mountain into the Driva river.
Mattenbachfall in Switzerland's Lauterbrunnen valley has a total height of 840 m, tied with Pu'uka'oku Falls and James Bruce Falls.
Pu'uka'oku Falls on the north coast of Molokai, Hawaii, near Olo'upena Falls, has a total height of 840 m, tied with Mattenbachfall and James Bruce Falls.
James Bruce Falls in Princess Louisa Marine Provincial Park, British Columbia, is the highest measured waterfall in North America. It drops 840 m from a small snowfield to Princess Louisa Inlet, tied with Mattenbachfall and Pu'uka'oku Falls. Its two parallel streams flow unevenly through the year and usually dry up in hot summers.
| # | Name | Location | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Angel Falls (Salto Ángel) | Bolívar | Venezuela |
| 2 | Tugela Falls | KwaZulu-Natal | South Africa |
| 3 | Tres Hermanas Falls (Three Sisters Falls) | Junín | Peru |
| 4 | Olo'upena Falls | Molokai, Hawaii | United States |
| 5 | Yumbilla Falls | Amazonas | Peru |
| 6 | Skorga | Møre og Romsdal | Norway |
| 7 | Balåifossen | Vestland | Norway |
| 8 | Vinnufossen | Møre og Romsdal | Norway |
| 9 | Mattenbachfall | Lauterbrunnental | Switzerland |
| 10 | Pu'uka'oku Falls | Molokai, Hawaii | United States |
| 11 | James Bruce Falls | British Columbia | Canada |
Waterfalls are ranked by overall height in metres as given in the 'By overall height' table of Wikipedia's List of waterfalls by height (read 18 October 2026), which cites the World Waterfall Database for nearly every entry. Natural waterfalls only; underwater falls such as the Denmark Strait cataract are excluded. Seasonal falls are included, since several of the tallest flow only after rain or snowmelt. That source warns that there is no standard way to measure a waterfall and many heights are estimates, so close figures should be read as approximate. Tugela Falls is listed there at 947 m; its own Wikipedia article gives the official 948 m and notes a 2016 Czech survey that measured 983 m, which the World Waterfall Database has not confirmed. Mattenbachfall, Pu'uka'oku Falls and James Bruce Falls tie at 840 m. They are shown at ranks 9 to 11 in the order the source lists them, so this top ten has eleven entries.
Angel Falls in Venezuela, at 979 m total height with a single plunge of 807 m. A 2016 Czech survey put South Africa's Tugela Falls at 983 m, but that measurement has not been confirmed.
Total height runs from the top of the highest tier to the base of the lowest, including cascades in between. Tallest single drop counts only the longest uninterrupted fall. There is no standard method, and many heights are estimates taken from a distance.
Mattenbachfall, Pu'uka'oku Falls and James Bruce Falls are all listed at 840 m. Rather than drop one of them arbitrarily, all three are included.
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