Hydraulic Engineering · Ranked

The Tallest Dams in the World

The 50 tallest dams on Earth ranked by structural height, with river, reservoir, generating capacity and completion year for each.

How this is ranked: Dam height is measured from the lowest point of the foundation to the crest, which is why figures here can differ from the "above riverbed" numbers often quoted elsewhere. Ranking covers the dams indexed in YearMaps rather than every dam on Earth.

Entries Ranked: 50
Top Ranked: 305 m
Runner-Up: 300 m
Ranked By: Height

The Tallest Dams in the World
#	Name	Height	River	Capacity	Completed
1	Jinping-I Dam	305 m	Yalong	3,600 MW	2013
2	Nurek Dam	300 m	Vakhsh	3,015 MW	1980
3	Xiaowan Dam	292 m	Mekong (Lancang)	4,200 MW	2010
4	Baihetan Dam	289 m	Jinsha	16,000 MW	2021
5	Xiluodu Dam	285.5 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	13,860 MW	2013
6	Grande Dixence Dam	285 m	Dixence	2,069 MW	1965
7	Nuozhadu Dam	261.5 m	Mekong (Lancang)	5,850 MW	2014
8	Tehri Dam	260 m	Bhagirathi	2,400 MW	2006
9	Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam	242 m	Yenisey	6,400 MW	1978
10	Wudongde Dam	240 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	10,200 MW	2021
11	Oroville Dam	235 m	Feather	819 MW	1968
12	Goupitan Dam	232.5 m	Wu River (Yangtze)	3,000 MW	2009
13	Bhakra Dam	226 m	Sutlej	1,325 MW	1963
14	Hoover Dam	221 m	Colorado	2,080 MW	1936
15	Glen Canyon Dam	216 m	Colorado	1,320 MW	1966
16	Daniel-Johnson Dam (Manic-5)	214 m	Manicouagan	2,660 MW	1970
17	Itaipu Dam	196 m	Paraná	14,000 MW	1984
18	Three Gorges Dam	181 m	Yangtze	22,500 MW	2012
19	Cahora Bassa Dam	171 m	Zambezi	2,075 MW	1974
20	Idukki Dam	169 m	Periyar	780 MW	1976
21	Atatürk Dam	169 m	Euphrates	2,400 MW	1992
22	Grand Coulee Dam	168 m	Columbia	6,809 MW	1942
23	Sardar Sarovar Dam	163 m	Narmada	1,450 MW	2017
24	Guri Dam (Simón Bolívar)	162 m	Caroní	10,235 MW	1986
25	Xiangjiaba Dam	162 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	6,400 MW	2012
26	Robert-Bourassa Dam (LG-2)	162 m	La Grande	5,616 MW	1979
27	Ranjit Sagar Dam (Thein Dam)	160 m	Ravi	600 MW	2001
28	Guanyinyan Dam	159 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	3,000 MW	2014
29	Liyuan Dam	155 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	2,420 MW	2014
30	Xiaolangdi Dam	154 m	Yellow River	1,800 MW	2001
31	Mangla Dam	147 m	Jhelum	1,500 MW	1967
32	Srisailam Dam	145 m	Krishna	1,670 MW	1980
33	Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD)	145 m	Blue Nile	5,150 MW	2023
34	Baglihar Dam	143 m	Chenab	900 MW	2008
35	Tarbela Dam	143 m	Indus	4,888 MW	1976
36	Ahai Dam	138 m	Jinsha (Yangtze)	2,000 MW	2012
37	Cheruthoni Dam	138 m	Periyar / Idukki	780 MW	1976
38	Ilısu Dam	135 m	Tigris	1,200 MW	2020
39	Pong Dam (Maharana Pratap Sagar)	133 m	Beas	396 MW	1974
40	Kariba Dam	128 m	Zambezi	1,830 MW	1959
41	Nagarjuna Sagar Dam	124 m	Krishna	816 MW	1967
42	Lower Subansiri Dam	116 m	Subansiri	2,000 MW	2024
43	Akosombo Dam	114 m	Volta	1,020 MW	1965
44	Salal Dam	113 m	Chenab	690 MW	1987
45	Mosul Dam (Saddam Dam)	113 m	Tigris	1,052 MW	1986
46	Aswan High Dam	111 m	Nile	2,100 MW	1970
47	Sanmenxia Dam	106 m	Yellow River	400 MW	1960
48	Koyna Dam	103 m	Koyna	1,960 MW	1964
49	Supa Dam	101 m	Kali	100 MW	1987
50	Kulamavu Dam	100 m	Periyar / Idukki	780 MW	1977

Rankings cover entities indexed in YearMaps and are derived from open geospatial data. See data sources.

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The same ranking for a single country.

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