France's 82.5-metre Île Vierge Lighthouse is the tallest traditional lighthouse in the world; five of the top ten are in France or Italy and three in Russia.
The tallest traditional lighthouse in the world is the Île Vierge Lighthouse in Brittany, France, a granite tower 82.5 metres tall completed in 1902. Second is the Lanterna di Genova in Italy at 77 metres and third is Gatteville in Normandy, France, at 75 metres. Heights are tower heights from The Lighthouse Directory's list of the tallest lighthouses.
A lighthouse can be called tall in two ways: by the height of the tower itself, or by the focal height of its light above the sea. A short tower on a high cliff can shine from higher up than a giant tower on a beach. This list ranks towers by their own height. It counts only traditional lighthouses, meaning towers built by navigation authorities mainly as aids to navigation. Monuments, office towers and port-control buildings that happen to carry a light are left out, which is why some famous structures do not appear.
The Île Vierge (Phare de l'Île Vierge) off the north coast of Finistère in Brittany is an 82.5-metre round granite tower completed in 1902. It is the tallest traditional lighthouse and the tallest stone lighthouse in the world.
Genoa's Lanterna dates from 1543 and stands 77 metres tall, making it the tallest lighthouse in Italy and the Mediterranean and the second-tallest stone lighthouse in the world. It is still active.
The Gatteville light at the tip of the Cotentin peninsula in Normandy is a 75-metre granite tower built in 1835. It is the third-tallest stone lighthouse in the world and still active.
This 73-metre range light guides ships into the port of Saint Petersburg and is the tallest lighthouse in Russia. The Directory gives its construction date as unknown.
Mulantou, at the northeastern tip of Hainan, is a 72-metre concrete tower built in 1995 that marks the entrance to the Qiongzhou Strait. It is the tallest lighthouse in China and shares its height with Baishamen.
Baishamen on Haidian Island in Haikou is a 72-metre concrete tower that serves as the landfall light for Haikou. It ties with Mulantou on tower height and is listed after it.
Storozhenskiy, on the southern shore of Lake Ladoga, is a 71-metre stone tower built in 1911, which makes it the tallest lake lighthouse on this list.
Osinovetskiy, also on Lake Ladoga, stands 70 metres tall. It is one of three Russian towers in the top ten.
Cordouan, on a reef at the mouth of the Gironde, is a 68-metre stone tower built between 1611 and 1788. It ties with Punta Penna on tower height.
Punta Penna near Vasto in Abruzzo is a 68-metre concrete tower, the second-tallest lighthouse in Italy after Genoa. The Directory dates the current tower to 1948. It ties with Cordouan.
| # | Name | Location | Completed | Construction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Île Vierge Lighthouse | Finistère, France | 1902 | Granite |
| 2 | Lanterna di Genova | Genoa, Italy | 1543 | Stone |
| 3 | Gatteville Lighthouse | Gatteville-le-Phare, France | 1835 | Granite |
| 4 | Lesnoy Mole Rear Range Light | Saint Petersburg, Russia | unknown | Probably concrete |
| 5 | Mulantou Lighthouse | Hainan, China | 1995 | Concrete |
| 6 | Baishamen Lighthouse | Haikou, Hainan, China | 2000s | Concrete |
| 7 | Storozhenskiy Lighthouse | Lake Ladoga, Russia | 1911 | Stone |
| 8 | Osinovetskiy Lighthouse | Lake Ladoga, Russia | about 1910 | Stone |
| 9 | Cordouan Lighthouse | Gironde estuary, France | 1611-1788 | Stone |
| 10 | Punta Penna Lighthouse | Vasto, Abruzzo, Italy | 1948 | Concrete |
Ranked by tower height in metres (base to top of the structure), not focal height, as given on The Lighthouse Directory's 'The Tallest Lighthouses' page, which lists traditional lighthouses: buildings put up by navigation safety authorities primarily as aids to navigation. Structures that only carry a light, such as Jeddah's port-control tower, Yokohama Marine Tower and the Perry memorial in Ohio, are excluded. Rank 1 is the tallest. The Directory notes that tower heights are approximate and that sources measure them differently; other compilations based on the NGA List of Lights differ by a metre or so for some towers (for example 76 m for Genoa and 71 m for Punta Penna and Osinovetskiy). Ties: Mulantou and Baishamen are both 72 m and are listed in the Directory's order; Cordouan and Punta Penna are both 68 m and are listed alphabetically. Trieste's Vittoria Light is given as 68 m in NGA-based lists and would share 9th place if the Directory lists it at that height.
Among traditional lighthouses, the Île Vierge Lighthouse in Brittany, France, at 82.5 metres. Some taller structures carry navigation lights, such as the port-control tower in Jeddah, but they were not built primarily as lighthouses.
The Jeddah Light is a port-control tower that also carries a light. The Lighthouse Directory says it has a credible claim to be the world's tallest light tower, but it is not a traditional lighthouse, so this list leaves it out.
Tower height is the height of the structure from its base. Focal height is the height of the light above sea level, which includes the ground the tower stands on. This list uses tower height.
Cape Hatteras Light in North Carolina, a brick tower completed in 1870. It is shorter than every lighthouse on this list.
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