The world's superlative trees can be ranked by many factors. Records have been kept for trees with superlative height, trunk diameter (girth), canopy coverage, airspace volume, wood volume, estimated mass, and age.
Tallest
The heights of the tallest trees in the world have been the subject of considerable dispute and much exaggeration. Modern verified measurements with laser rangefinders or with tape drop measurements made by tree climbers (such as those carried out by canopy researchers), have shown that some older tree height measurement methods are often unreliable, sometimes producing exaggerations of 5% to 15% or more above the real height. Historical claims of trees growing to , and even , are now largely disregarded as unreliable, and attributed to human error.
The following are the tallest reliably measured specimens from the top 10 species. This table shows only currently standing specimens: +List of tallest living trees by speciesTree nameSpeciesHeightCountryLocationReferences and notesMetersFeetHyperionCoast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)United StatesRedwood National Park, California It reached in 2026; second and third tallest when Hyperion was found, were Helios and Icarus tall (in 2006).South Tibetan cypress (Cupressus austrotibetica)ChinaYarlung Zangbo National Nature Reserve, TibetSitka spruce (Picea sitchensis)United StatesRedwood National Park, CaliforniaCoast Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii)United StatesNear Eugene, Oregon"Douglas Fir: The "holy grail" is a 327.5-foot specimen, near Eugene, Oregon. A tree in Redwood National Park that stands 326-feet is currently the closest contender. Another giant doug fir, over 330-feet grew in Hand Creek Oregon but recently lost its top."MenaraYellow meranti (Shorea faguetiana)MalaysiaDanum Valley Conservation Area, SabahThe original quoted figure of 100.8m was from the top leaves to the bottom of the buttresses on the low side of ground. The correct height of the tree is 97.58m – that is the average between the distance to the lowest part of bole and the distance to the highest part of boleGiant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)United StatesSequoia National Park, CaliforniaCenturionMountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans)AustraliaArve Valley, TasmaniaTree had reached 100.5 m in 2018, but lost 4 meters of height by 2025 due to the 2019 fire damage and now ranks 7th as tallest living tree species.Neeminah Loggerale Meena, or Mother and DaughterSouthern blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus)AustraliaEvercreech Forest Reserve, TasmaniaThe crown of this tree is dying back.Dinizia excelsaBrazilNear the boundary of Amapá and Pará
Tallest historically Despite the tall heights attained by trees in the present, records exist of much greater heights in the past, before widespread logging took place. Some, if not most, of these records are likely greatly exaggerated, but some have been reportedly measured with semi-reliable instruments such as tape lines, tape measures or chains, when cut down and measured on the ground by forestry officials, licensed surveyors or reputable lumbermen. Some of the heights recorded in this way exceed the maximum possible height of a tree as calculated by theorists, lending some limited credibility to speculation that some superlative trees are able to 'reverse' transpiration streams and absorb water through needles in foggy environments. +List of tallest historically known non-surviving or lost treesTree nameSpeciesHeightCountryLocationReferences and notesMetersFeetG Klein TreeMountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans)AustraliaAt the Black Spur, VictoriaNote: Fallen in 1865 and measured by Mr. Gustav Klein at 483 feet in length, and 10 feet diameter 16 feet above ground.Nooksack GiantDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)United StatesAlpenglow Farm, WashingtonNote: Cut down in 1897. Measured using a tape by lumbermenFather of the ForestGiant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)137.16450United StatesCalaveras Grove, CaliforniaHighest estimate, lowest is 365 ft; fell several centuries agoFerguson TreeMountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans)AustraliaNear the Watts River, VictoriaNote: Fallen in 1872, and measured on the ground by a Government Forester with a tape line. Reportedly missing part of the top Eel River GiantCoast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)United StatesEnglewood, Redcrest CaliforniaNote: Cut down on Feb 14, 1893, and measured on the ground by lumbermen Nehalem GiantDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)United StatesNehalem River, near Jewell, OregonNote: Cut down in February 1886 and reportedly measured on the ground by property owner at 405 feet in length from "butt to uppermost bough." Later vouched for in 1931 by a local witness who recalled it measured 425 feet from "roots to uppermost bough." It retained a 14 feet diameter over 100 ft high. Lynn Valley TreeDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)CanadaLynn Valley, British ColumbiaNote: Cut down in 1902 and measured on the ground by property owner. Yarragon TreeMountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans)AustraliaSouth Yarragon Ranges, VictoriaNote: Felled c. 1889 and measured on the ground by a settler of the district at 410 feet in length. Reportedly part of tree was burnt off.Mineral TreeDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)United StatesMineral, WashingtonNote: Progressively lost height until falling in a storm in 1930. Standing portion and fallen top measured by lumbermen, a civil engineer, and at least one Govt. Forester between years 1905 and 1930. One of the oldest Douglas fir on record at 1,020 years in ageEureka TreeCoast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)United StatesEureka, CaliforniaNote: Standing height surveyed, and tree then cut down in 1914 and measured by lumbermen.Nisqually TreeDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)United StatesAshford, WashingtonNote: Measured as a fallen tree near the Nisqually river by a US Forest Service Ranger and his crew in the year 1900 with steel tape. A small portion of the tree's top was missing.Thorpdale TreeMountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans)AustraliaThorpdale, VictoriaNote: Standing height measured at by theodolite in 1880 by a surveyor. The tree was later felled in 1881, remeasured on the ground by chain at in length by same surveyor. Lacey TreeDouglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)United StatesLacey, WashingtonFelled on August 9, 1857, by homesteader Benjamin F. Whiting and a young George H. Himes while clearing land. Himes, who later became curator of the Oregon Historical Society, recorded that the tree measured 354 ft (107.89 m) in length with a diameter of 9 ft 5 in (2.87 m) at a height of 3 to 4 feet (1-1.22 m) above ground.Klinki (Araucaria hunsteinii) Papua New GuineaNote: all the references to this species are historical accounts – there is no currently known living klinki of this height.White KnightManna gum (Eucalyptus viminalis)AustraliaFingal, TasmaniaThis tree has died, the likely cause being more frequent heatwaves and reduced rainfall.
Stoutest
The girth of a tree is usually much easier to measure than the height, as it is a simple matter of stretching a tape round the trunk, and pulling it taut to find the circumference. Despite this, UK tree author Alan Mitchell made the following comment about measurements of yew trees:
As a general standard, tree girth is taken at "breast height". This is converted to and cited as dbh (diameter at breast height) in tree and forestry literature. Breast height is defined differently in different situations, with most forestry measurements taking girth at 1.3 m above ground, while those who measure ornamental trees usually measure at 1.5 m above ground; in most cases this makes little difference to the measured girth. On sloping ground, the "above ground" reference point is usually taken as the highest point on the ground touching the trunk, but in North America a point is usually used which is the average of the highest point and the lowest point the tree trunk appears to contact the soil. Some of the inflated old measurements may have been taken at ground level. Some past exaggerated measurements also result from measuring the complete next-to-bark measurement, pushing the tape in and out over every crevice and buttress. The measurements could also be influenced by deviation of the tape measure from a horizontal plane (which might seem called for if the trunk does not grow straight up), and the presence of features such as branches, spikes, etc.
Modern trends are to cite the tree's diameter rather than the circumference. The diameter of the tree is calculated by finding the mean diameter of the trunk, in most cases obtained by dividing the measured circumference by π; this assumes the trunk is mostly circular in cross-section (an oval or irregular cross-section would result in a mean diameter slightly greater than the assumed circle). Accurately measuring circumference or diameter is difficult in species with the large buttresses that are characteristic of many species of rainforest trees. Simple measurement of circumference of such trees can be misleading when the circumference includes much empty space between buttresses. See also Tree girth measurement
Baobabs (genus Adansonia) store large amounts of water in the very soft wood in their trunks. This leads to marked variation in their girth over the year (though not more than about 2.5%), reaching maximum at the end of the rainy season, and minimum at the end of the dry season. +List of stoutest living single-trunk trees by speciesSpeciesDiameterTree nameLocationNotes and ReferencesMetersFeetMontezuma cypress (Taxodium mucronatum)Árbol del TuleSanta Maria del Tule, Oaxaca, Mexico This diameter includes buttressing. A more accurate mean diameter for this tree is .Baobab (Adansonia digitata):Sunland BaobabSunland Farm, Limpopo, South AfricaRenowned because a bar and wine cellar operated inside its hollow trunk, until it split in 2017.Baobab (Adansonia digitata):Sagole BaobabNear Tshipise, Limpopo Province, South AfricaThis became the stoutest tree in South Africa after two other large baobabs, the Glencoe and Sunland Baobabs, collapsed in 2009 and 2016 respectively.White or Strangler Fig (Ficus virens):The Temple FigMurwillimbah, NSW, AustraliaListing National Register of Big TreesMoreton Bay fig (Ficus macrophylla):The Bellingen FigBellingen, NSW, AustraliaCoast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)JupiterRedwood National Park, California, United StatesGiant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)General GrantGeneral Grant Grove, California, United States A hollow, nameless Giant Sequoia along the Paradise Trail of the Atwell Mills Grove in Sequoia National Park, has a basal diameter (not girth) of .Za (Adansonia za)The Ampanihy BaobabNorth of Morombe, southwest MadagascarChinese camphor tree (Cinnamomum camphora)Kamō no ŌkusuKamō, Kagoshima, JapanEucalyptus jacksoniiHollow trunkWalpole, West Australia, Australia
Measurements become ambiguous when multiple trunks (whether from an individual tree or multiple trees) grow together. The Sacred Fig grows adventitious roots from its branches, which become new trunks when the root reaches the ground and thickens; a single sacred fig tree can have hundreds of such trunks. The multi-stemmed Hundred Horse Chestnut was known to have a circumference of when it was measured in 1780.
There are known more than 50 species of trees exceeding the diameter of 4.45 m or circumference of 14 m.
Largest
The largest trees are defined as having the highest wood volume in a single stem. These trees are both tall and large in diameter and, in particular, hold a large diameter high up the trunk. Measurement is very complex, particularly if branch volume is to be included as well as the trunk volume, so measurements have only been made for a small number of trees, and generally only for the trunk. Few attempts have ever been made to include root or leaf volume.