List of roller coaster rankings
Roller coasters are amusement rides developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. Early iterations during the 16th and 17th centuries, popularized in Russia, involved wooden sleds that carried riders down large slides made from ice. The first roller coasters to attach a train to a wooden track appeared in France in the early 1800s.[1] Although wooden roller coasters are still being produced, steel roller coasters were introduced in the mid-20th-century and eventually became more common. They can be found on every continent except Antarctica.[2]
Amusement parks often compete to build the tallest, fastest, and longest rides to attract thrill seekers and boost park attendance.[3] Ranked by height, speed, length, and number of inversions, roller coasters often became the focal point for competing parks. Computer-simulated models led to innovations that produced more intense thrills while improving quality and durability.[4] The debut of Magnum XL-200 in 1989 at Cedar Point introduced the first complete-circuit roller coaster to exceed 200 feet (61 m) in height,[5][6] marking a pivot point in the industry and a new era sometimes referred to as the Coaster Wars.[4] This period saw increasing competition as parks sought to be the latest to set a new world record, and some records were held for less than a year.[7]
The pace of competition eventually slowed, however.[4][7] The now-defunct Kingda Ka, previously the tallest coaster in the world at 456 feet (139 m),[8] held the height record from 2005 until its closure in 2024.[4][7] Formula Rossa, formerly the world's fastest at 149 mph (240 km/h), held the speed record for 15 years.[9] Steel Dragon 2000, with its track length of 8,133 feet (2,479 m), was the longest in the world for more than 25 years. These records were eventually surpassed by Falcons Flight in 2025, which opened as the tallest, fastest, and longest roller coaster in the world. Other notables include The Beast, the world's longest wooden coaster since its opening in 1979, featuring a track length of 7,361 feet (2,244 m),[10] and The Smiler, which set a world record with fourteen inversions in 2013.[11]
Key
[edit source]| Key | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | Record holder |
| ** | Under construction |
| * | Still exists but not operating |
Height rankings
[edit source]Tallest steel roller coasters
[edit source]Longest steel roller coaster drops
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop length | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Falcons Flight | Six Flags Qiddiya City | 518.4 ft (158.0 m) | Intamin | December 2025 – present | |
| 2 | Top Thrill 2 | Cedar Point | 400 ft (120 m) | Intamin/Zamperla | May 2003 – May 2005 November 2024 – December 2025 | |
| 3 | Red Force | Ferrari Land | ~345 ft (105 m)[note 6] | Intamin | N/a | |
| 4 | Fury 325 | Carowinds | 320 ft (98 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | N/a | |
| 5 | Steel Dragon 2000 | Nagashima Spa Land | 306.8 ft (93.5 m) | D. H. Morgan Manufacturing | N/a | |
| 6 | Leviathan | Canada's Wonderland | 306 ft (93 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | N/a | |
| 7 | Millennium Force | Cedar Point | 300 ft (91 m) | Intamin | N/a | |
| Orion | Kings Island | 300 ft (91 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | N/a | ||
| Pantherian | Kings Dominion | 300 ft (91 m) | Intamin | N/a | ||
| 10 | Tormenta Rampaging Run | Six Flags Over Texas | 285 ft (87 m) | Bolliger & Mabillard | N/a | |
Tallest wooden roller coasters
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Height | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | T Express | Everland | 183.8 ft (56.0 m) | Intamin | June 2009 – present | |
| Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | 183.8 ft (56.0 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2016 – present | ||
| 3 | El Toro | Six Flags Great Adventure | 181 ft (55 m) | Intamin | N/a | |
| 4 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | 165 ft (50 m) | Rocky Mountain Construction | N/a | |
| 5 | Colossos - Kampf der Giganten | Heide Park | 164 ft (50 m) | Intamin | N/a | |
| 6 | The Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | 159 ft (48 m) | The Gravity Group | N/a | |
| 7 | Jupiter | Kijima Kogen | 137.8 ft (42.0 m) | Intamin | N/a | |
| 8 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | 136 ft (41 m) | The Gravity Group | N/a | |
| 9 | Wodan Timbur Coaster | Europa-Park | 131.2 ft (40.0 m) | Great Coasters International | N/a | |
| 10 | Le Monstre | La Ronde | 130.9 ft (39.9 m) | Martin & Vleminckx | July 1985 – March 1990 |
Longest wooden roller coaster drops
[edit source]Gallery
[edit source]Speed rankings
[edit source]Fastest steel roller coasters
[edit source]Fastest wooden roller coasters
[edit source]Gallery
[edit source]Length rankings
[edit source]Longest steel roller coasters
[edit source]Longest wooden roller coasters
[edit source]Gallery
[edit source]Inversion rankings
[edit source]This listing contains all types of roller coaster inversions.
Steel roller coasters
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Inversions | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Smiler | Alton Towers | 14 | Gerstlauer | May 2013 – present | |
| * | Eleventh Roller Coaster | Great Xingdong Tourist World | 11 | Hebei Zhongye | N/a | |
| 2 | Altair | Cinecittà World | 10 | Intamin | N/a | |
| Colossus | Thorpe Park | Intamin | March 2002 – May 2013 | |||
| Crazy Coaster | Locajoy Holiday | Intamin | N/a | |||
| Velikolukskiy Myasokombinat-2 | Wonder Island | Intamin | N/a | |||
| Sik | Flamingo Land | Intamin | N/a | |||
| * | LightSpeed | Wonderland Eurasia | 10 | Intamin | N/a | |
| 7 | AlpenFury | Canada's Wonderland | 9 | Premier Rides | N/a | |
| 8 | Avalancha | Xetulul | 8 | Intamin | N/a | |
| Dragon Khan | PortAventura Park | Bolliger & Mabillard | May 1995 – March 2002 | |||
| Steel Curtain[note 14] | Kennywood | S&S - Sansei Technologies | N/a |
Wooden roller coasters
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Inversions | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Outlaw Run | Silver Dollar City | 3 | Rocky Mountain Construction | March 2013 – present | |
| Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2016 – present | |||
| 2 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | 2 | Rocky Mountain Construction | N/a | |
| 3 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | 1 | The Gravity Group | N/a | |
| Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Ningbo | Martin & Vleminckx Rides | N/a | |||
| Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Wuhu | Martin & Vleminckx Rides | N/a | |||
| Jungle Trailblazer | Oriental Heritage, Jinan | Martin & Vleminckx Rides | N/a | |||
| Mine Blower | Fun Spot America: Kissimmee | The Gravity Group | N/a |
Gallery
[edit source]Drop angle rankings
[edit source]Steel roller coasters
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop angle | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TMNT Shellraiser | Nickelodeon Universe | 121.5° | Gerstlauer | October 2019 – present | |
| 2 | Takabisha | Fuji-Q Highland | 121.0° | Gerstlauer | 15 July 2011 – October 2019 | |
| 3 | Green Lantern Coaster | Warner Bros. Movie World | 120.5° | S&S Worldwide | N/a | |
| 4 | Crazy Bird | Happy Valley Tianjin | 120.0° | S&S Worldwide | N/a | |
| 5 | Cannibal | Lagoon | 116.0° | Lagoon Corporation | N/a | |
| 6 | Timber Drop | Fraispertuis City | 113.0° | S&S Worldwide | 2 July 2011 – 14 July 2011 | |
| 7 | Mumbo Jumbo | Flamingo Land Resort | 112.0° | S&S Worldwide | July 2009 – 1 July 2011 | |
| 8 | Steel Hawg | Indiana Beach | 111.0° | S&S Worldwide | July 2008 – July 2009 | |
| 9 | Defiance | Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park | 102.3° | Gerstlauer | N/a | |
| 10 | Monster | Adventureland | 101.0° | Gerstlauer | N/a | |
| Toutatis | Parc Astérix | Intamin | N/a |
Wooden roller coasters
[edit source]| Rank | Name | Park | Country | Drop angle | Manufacturer | Record held |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Goliath | Six Flags Great America | 85.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | June 2014 – October 2015, August 2025 – present | |
| 2 | Wildfire | Kolmården Wildlife Park | 83.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | N/a | |
| 3 | Outlaw Run | Silver Dollar City | 81.0° | Rocky Mountain Construction | March 2013 – June 2014 | |
| 4 | T Express | Everland | 77.0° | Intamin | March 2008 – March 2013 | |
| 5 | El Toro | Six Flags Great Adventure | 76.0° | Intamin | June 2006 – March 2008 | |
| 6 | Balder | Liseberg | 70.0° | Intamin | April 2003 – June 2006 | |
| 7 | Voyage | Holiday World & Splashin' Safari | 66.0° | The Gravity Group | N/a | |
| 8 | Hades 360 | Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park | 65.0° | The Gravity Group | N/a | |
| Cú Chulainn | Emerald Park | The Gravity Group | N/a | |||
| 10 | Hala Madrid | Real Madrid World | 63.9° | Great Coasters International | N/a |
Notes
[edit source]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 A shuttle roller coaster, not complete-circuit
- ↑ Record was held by Superman: The Escape[note 1] from March 1997 – May 2003, with a height of 415 feet (126 m).[12]
- 1 2 Record was held by Kingda Ka from May 2005 – November 2024, featuring a height of 456 feet (139 m) and a drop distance of 418 feet (127 m).[8]
- ↑ Falcons Flight has been advertised with a height of 640 feet (200 m). This is the difference from the highest point to lowest point. Tallest freestanding element is the 534.8 feet (163.0 m) camelback hill.[14]
- ↑ Record was held by Tower of Terror[note 1] from January 1997 – May 2003 and Superman: The Escape[note 1] from March 1997 – May 2003, both of which featured a drop distance of 328.1 feet (100.0 m).[15][12]
- ↑ Drop height estimated at 345 ft (105 m) according to TripSavvy.[17]
- 1 2 3 Record was held by Son of Beast from May 2000 – June 2009. It had a height of 218 feet (66 m), a drop distance of 214 feet (65 m) and a maximum speed of 78 mph (126 km/h).[18]
- ↑ Record was held by Tower of Terror[note 1] from January 1997 – December 2001 and Superman: The Escape[note 1] from March 1997 – December 2001, both of which featured a maximum speed of 100.0 mph (160.9 km/h).[15][12]
- ↑ Record was held by Dodonpa from December 2001 – May 2003, with a maximum speed of 106.9 mph (172.0 km/h).[21]
- ↑ Record was held by Kingda Ka from May 2005 – November 2010. It had a maximum speed of 128 mph (206 km/h).[8]
- ↑ Record was held by Lightning Rod from June 2016 – September 2020, before its conversion into a steel roller coaster. It had a drop distance of 165 feet (50 m) and a maximum speed of 73 mph (117 km/h).[23]
- ↑ Record was held by The Ultimate from July 1991 – August 2000, with a length of 7,442 feet (2,268 m).[25]
- ↑ Record was co-held by 10 Inversion Roller Coaster from February 2006 – May 2013, featuring 10 inversions
- ↑ The Roller Coaster DataBase lists the ride as having eight inversions, since the banana roll is counted as one inversion. Other sources list the ride as having nine inversions, with the banana roll counted as two.
- ↑ Record was held by Son of Beast from May 2000 – July 2006, which featured 1 inversion. The vertical loop was removed following an incident in July 2006.[18]
- ↑ Record was held by Switchback from October 2015 – August 2025, featuring a drop angle of 87.0°.[31]
References
[edit source]- ↑ Harris, Tom. "How Roller Coasters Work". Discovery Communications. Retrieved December 26, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Roller Coaster Census Report". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
- ↑ Martín, Hugo (March 13, 2012). "Thrill ride designers compete to push the limits". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 "Top Thrill Dragster: The Inside Track on Cedar Point's Landmark Coaster and Potential Final Lap". Theme Park Tourist. March 25, 2022. Archived from the original on March 25, 2022. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- ↑ "It's opening weekend for Cedar Point". Associated Press. May 15, 2009. Archived from the original on May 18, 2009. Retrieved December 26, 2012.
- ↑ "Magnum XL–200 20th anniversary ceremony". PointBuzz. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
- 1 2 3 Miller, Danny (July 29, 2013). "Battle Resurgence: Are the Coaster Wars back?". COASTER-net. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- 1 2 3 Marden, Duane. "Kingda Ka (Six Flags Great Adventure)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Formula Rossa (Ferrari World Abu Dhabi)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "The Beast (Kings Island)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 23, 2026.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "The Smiler (Alton Towers)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- 1 2 3 Marden, Duane. "Superman: Escape from Krypton (Six Flags Magic Mountain)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Steel Record Holders – Height". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved September 20, 2010.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Falcons Flight (Six Flags Qiddiya City)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
- 1 2 Marden, Duane. "Tower of Terror II (Dreamworld)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 31, 2025.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Steel Record Holders – Drop". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- ↑ Levine, Arthur (January 7, 2021). "The 10 Tallest Roller Coasters in the World". TripSavvy. Archived from the original on June 30, 2022. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- 1 2 Marden, Duane. "Son of Beast (Kings Island)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved December 26, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Height". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Drop". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Do-Dodonpa (Fuji-Q Highland)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved September 12, 2025.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Steel Record Holders – Speed". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 4, 2010.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Lightning Rod (Dollywood)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Speed". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Ultimate (Lightwater Valley)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Record Holders – Steel – Length". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Length". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Steel Record Holders – Most Inversions". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Most Inversions". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Steel Record Holders – Angle". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Switchback (ZDT's Amusement Park)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
- ↑ Marden, Duane. "Wood Record Holders – Drop Angle". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
External links
[edit source]- Roller coaster census at the Roller Coaster DataBase
- Top 100 roller coasters on CoasterBuzz






