Some bridges do not just cross a gap, they hang dizzyingly high above it. The highest bridges in the world carry roads and railways hundreds of metres above rivers and gorges, feats of engineering that double as tourist attractions. Almost all of them are clustered in the mountains of southwest China, where deep canyons and a vast expressway-building programme have produced one record-breaker after another. Here are the ten highest bridges anywhere, ranked by deck height, which is the distance from the road down to the ground or water below.
Deck height is not the same as a bridge’s structural height. This list ranks bridges by how far the road sits above the ground, not by the height of their towers, so it differs from the list of tallest bridges, which ranks them by the size of the structure itself.
| Rank | Bridge | Deck height | Country | Opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huajiang Canyon Bridge | 625 m (2,051 ft) | China | 2025 |
| 2 | Duge Bridge | 565 m (1,854 ft) | China | 2016 |
| 3 | Sidu River Bridge | 496 m (1,627 ft) | China | 2009 |
| 4 | Puli Bridge | 485 m (1,591 ft) | China | 2015 |
| 5 | Jin’an Bridge | 461 m (1,512 ft) | China | 2020 |
| 6 | Yachi River Bridge | 434 m (1,424 ft) | China | 2016 |
| 7 | Zangkejiang Bridge | 410 m (1,350 ft) | China | 2024 |
| 8 | Qingshui River Bridge | 406 m (1,332 ft) | China | 2015 |
| 9 | Baluarte Bridge | 390 m (1,280 ft) | Mexico | 2013 |
| 10 | Baling River Bridge | 370 m (1,210 ft) | China | 2009 |
1. Huajiang Canyon Bridge, China
Deck height of 625 m (2,051 ft). Opened in September 2025 across the Beipan River gorge in Guizhou, the Huajiang Canyon Bridge is the highest bridge in the world by a wide margin. Guinness World Records measured its deck at 626 m above the canyon floor. The steel-truss suspension bridge has a main span of 1,420 m (4,660 ft) and cut the journey across the gorge from about an hour of mountain driving to a couple of minutes.
2. Duge Bridge, China
Deck height of 565 m (1,854 ft). Also crossing the Beipan River, the Duge Bridge (often called the Beipanjiang Bridge) held the title of world’s highest bridge from its opening in 2016 until Huajiang overtook it in 2025. It is a cable-stayed bridge linking Yunnan and Guizhou provinces, with a main span of 720 m.
3. Sidu River Bridge, China
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Deck height of 496 m (1,627 ft). The Sidu River Bridge in Hubei was the world’s highest bridge from 2009 to 2016. This 900 m suspension span was famously built by firing the first pilot cable across the valley with a rocket, because the gorge was too wide and deep to string it any other way.
4. Puli Bridge, China
Deck height of 485 m (1,591 ft). Opened in 2015 in Yunnan, the Puli Bridge is a suspension bridge carrying the same Hangzhou to Ruili expressway that runs over the Duge Bridge further along its route.
5. Jin’an Bridge, China
Deck height of 461 m (1,512 ft). This suspension bridge near Lijiang in Yunnan opened in 2020 and crosses the Jinsha River, one of the headwater stretches of the Yangtze.
6. Yachi River Bridge, China
Deck height of 434 m (1,424 ft). A cable-stayed bridge over the Wu River in Guizhou, opened in 2016. With its 800 m span it is one of the longest cable-stayed steel-truss bridges in the world as well as one of the highest.
7. Zangkejiang Bridge, China
Deck height of 410 m (1,350 ft). One of the newest entries on the list, this Guizhou suspension bridge opened in 2024 on the Nayong to Qinglong expressway.
8. Qingshui River Bridge, China
Deck height of 406 m (1,332 ft). A suspension bridge in Guizhou, opened in 2015, spanning the deep valley of the Qingshui River.
9. Baluarte Bridge, Mexico
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Deck height of 390 m (1,280 ft). The highest bridge outside China and the highest in the Americas. This cable-stayed bridge on the Durango to Mazatlan highway opened in 2013 and crosses the Baluarte River canyon in the Sierra Madre, with a main span of 520 m.
10. Baling River Bridge, China
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Deck height of 370 m (1,210 ft). A suspension bridge in Guizhou opened in 2009, with a long 1,088 m main span across the Baling River valley.
Other remarkable high bridges
A few bridges sit just outside the current top ten but are too striking to leave out. The Aizhai Bridge in Hunan (deck height 336 m, opened 2012) is one of the most photographed of all, a tunnel-to-tunnel suspension bridge that emerges straight from the mountainside above the Dehang Canyon.
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The Royal Gorge Bridge in Colorado (deck height 291 m, opened 1929) was the highest bridge in the world for more than 70 years, from 1929 until 2001, and is still the highest in the United States. Today it is the centrepiece of a theme park above the Arkansas River.
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In India, the Chenab Rail Bridge opened in 2025 with its deck about 360 m above the river, making it one of the highest railway bridges ever built and the highest outside China.
For more record-breaking engineering, see the tallest dams in the world, the most famous bridges in the world, and the most amazing engineering achievements.
Nice Info! I love bridges
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