The Austin Skyline: A Guide to the Buildings

Quick answer: The Austin skyline is a young downtown of glass towers arranged around an old rule: the Texas State Capitol must stay visible. Its key pieces are the Capitol (1888), the Frost Bank Tower with its faceted crown (2003), the stacked-box Independent (2019), the Austonian (2010), Sixth and Guadalupe (2023, the tallest building in the city), and the University of Texas Tower just north of downtown.

A skyline shaped by a view

Austin is one of the few American cities that protects views of its capitol. Since the 1980s, the Capitol View Corridors have kept sightlines to the Texas State Capitol open from points around the city. Developers build around the corridors, which is why downtown's towers cluster in some blocks and leave gaps in others, and why the Capitol dome still shows up in photos of a skyline that is now many times its height.

The buildings

The Texas State Capitol

Completed in 1888 and built of pink "sunset red" granite quarried in the Texas Hill Country. Its dome rises a little over 300 feet, taller than the US Capitol in Washington, which Texans will mention. It sits at the head of Congress Avenue, looking straight down the street to the river.

The Frost Bank Tower

Opened in 2003, the Frost Bank Tower is the shape most people mean when they picture Austin: a tower with a stepped, faceted glass crown that catches the light at sunset. More than twenty years and dozens of new towers later, it is still the most recognizable.

The Independent

Finished in 2019, the Independent is the tower that looks like a stack of offset boxes, which is why locals call it the "Jenga building." At around 690 feet it is one of the tallest residential towers in Texas.

The Austonian

A slim residential tower completed in 2010, the Austonian was the tallest building in Austin until the Independent edged past it in 2019.

Sixth and Guadalupe

Completed in 2023, Sixth and Guadalupe took over as the tallest building in Austin, part of a wave of new towers that keeps changing the skyline every year.

The UT Tower

The Main Building of the University of Texas, finished in 1937, stands just north of downtown. Its tower is lit burnt orange after big Longhorn wins.

Beyond the towers

Two things define the Austin skyline that aren't buildings at all. The Congress Avenue Bridge is home to the largest urban bat colony in North America, and from spring to fall more than a million bats fly out from under it at dusk. And Austin still has its moonlight towers, 165-foot iron towers from the 1890s that once lit whole neighborhoods. It is believed to be the only city in the world where they still stand in use.

Bringing the skyline home

Our Austin skyline sculpture keeps the city's own rule: the Capitol and its dome sit low at the front of the base, with the Frost Bank Tower's crown and downtown's towers rising behind it. Matte black with brushed-gold lettering, in Small (6 inches), Medium (7.5 inches) or Large (9 inches).

For companies, the base can carry your company or event name instead of the city name on orders of 10 or more. Corporate orders.

FAQ

What is the tallest building in Austin?

Sixth and Guadalupe, completed in 2023. Before it, the Independent and, earlier, the Austonian held the title. Austin's skyline is changing fast, and taller towers are planned.

What is the building in Austin with the pointed top?

That's the Frost Bank Tower, opened in 2003. Its stepped, faceted crown is the most recognizable shape on the Austin skyline.

Why is the Austin skyline built around the Capitol?

Because the Capitol View Corridors protect sightlines to the Texas State Capitol from points across the city, so new towers have to be placed around them.

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