By Nora Lindqvist · Updated · Affiliate links, explained in my disclosure
Empire State Building Observation Deck
NYC Empire State Building - Observation Deck & Museum Ticket
4.7 (29,182) · from $50.08
Empire State Building vs One World Observatory comes down to this: I’d book the Empire State Building for the open-air deck, the museum and the most reviewed ticket, and One World Observatory for the higher deck, the harbour view and the lower price. The standard tickets cost $50.08 against $30.49, and the decks stand at 369 m against about 386.6 m. If you can only pick one on a first visit, I’d go with the Empire State Building.
| Tour | From | Rating | Length | Free cancellation | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYC Empire State Building - Observation Deck & Museum Ticket | $50.08 | ★ 4.7 (29,182) | 24-hour ticket | Yes | Check availability |
| NYC: One World Observatory Skip-the-Line Ticket | $30.49 | ★ 4.6 (13,487) | 24-hour ticket | Yes | Check availability |
| NYC: Empire State & Flatiron Tour with Optional 102nd Floor | $99 | ★ 4.6 (24) | 2 hours | Yes | Check availability |
| 9/11 Memorial Tour with Museum and One World Entry Options | $29 | ★ 4.7 (1,372) | 1.5 - 4.5 hours | Yes | Check availability |
In the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory choice, the two decks sit at opposite ends of Manhattan: the Empire State Building in Midtown, One World Observatory beside the 9/11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan. Every price, rating and inclusion here comes from the GetYourGuide listings I checked in October 2026, in US dollars. Links open GetYourGuide in a new tab, and I earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. The full ticket lists are on my Empire State Building tickets and One World Observatory tickets pages.
| Empire State Building | One World Observatory | |
|---|---|---|
| Deck height | 369 m, per Wikipedia | About 386.6 m, per Wikipedia |
| Floors | 86th (open-air) and 102nd (enclosed) | 100th, 101st and 102nd |
| Open-air space | Yes, on the 86th floor | No, the decks are indoors |
| Standard ticket from | $50.08 | $30.49 |
| Top ticket rating | 4.73 from 29,182 reviews | 4.63 from 13,487 reviews |
| Google Maps rating | 4.7 from 130,587 reviews | 4.7 from 26,435 reviews |
| Hours (Google Maps) | 9 AM to 11 PM | 9 AM to 9 PM |
| Time to allow | Self-paced on the standard ticket | 1.5 hours to a day of validity |
| In the view | Midtown, Central Park, the Hudson | The harbour, the Statue of Liberty, the 9/11 Memorial |
Height goes to One World Observatory, by 17.6 m. That is a small margin, and the horizon distance shows it: 70.2 km from its deck against 68.6 km from the Empire State Building, using the standard horizon formula. Nobody standing on either deck will notice that difference, so for Empire State Building vs One World Observatory I’d not choose on height alone. Both are well above the roof line of nearly every other building you can see, which is what makes the New York skyline readable from up there.
Direction matters more in the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory view contest. From the Empire State Building you stand in the middle of the island, with the Midtown towers around you and Central Park to the north. From One World Observatory you look over the Battery, New York Harbour and the Statue of Liberty, with the downtown skyline close in. I’d call the open-air 86th floor the best thing about the Empire State Building, because you feel the wind and photograph without glass. One World Observatory has no open air, but it does have the sharper harbour view.
The Empire State Building was the world's tallest building until the North Tower of the World Trade Center was topped out in 1970
One World Observatory is cheaper by $19.59 on the standard ticket: $30.49 against $50.08. That is nearly 40 percent less, and in the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory price contest it is the strongest argument for One World Observatory. The Empire State Building ticket costs more but bundles the museum galleries and the lobby with the 86th floor deck. The One World Observatory ticket is sold by the deck’s operator and includes the SkyPod ride and the City Pulse presentations, with higher tiers adding priority security.
Empire State Building Observation Deck
My pick: The Empire State Building default: $50.08, 4.73 stars from 29,182 reviews, with the museum and the open-air 86th floor.
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$50.08
Legends OWO, LLC
My pick: The One World Observatory default: $30.49, 4.63 stars from 13,487 reviews, from the deck's operator.
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$30.49
If you want a guide, both decks have one. The Empire State and Flatiron walk costs $99, takes 2 hours and has an optional 102nd floor, but it has only 24 reviews, so I’d buy it for the guide and not as proof. The 9/11 Memorial tour costs $29 and lists the observatory as an option, rated 4.69 from 1,372 reviews. I’d compare the total after you add the deck before booking it.
City Wonders Ltd. USA
My pick: A 2-hour Flatiron walk ending at the Empire State Building for $99; 4.6 stars from only 24 reviews.
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$99
911 Ground Zero Tour
My pick: A guided 9/11 Memorial tour from $29 with One World Observatory entry as an option; 4.69 stars from 1,372 reviews.
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$29
Calculator
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from per person, before any child or group discount
Prices are the lowest per-person prices on GetYourGuide when I last checked; the final price depends on the date, time slot and age.
I have no live queue data, so I can’t say which line is shorter. Both sell tickets for a chosen slot. The Empire State Building has the larger review base, with 130,587 Google Maps reviews against 26,435, which tells me far more people pass through it. One reviewer of the One World Observatory ticket wrote that the night view was the best and that it was not busy, which is one voice, not a trend.
For Empire State Building vs One World Observatory timing, hours are the real difference. The Empire State Building is open until 11 PM per Google Maps, while One World Observatory closes at 9 PM, so a June sunset at about 20:29 leaves you little time downtown. Sunset is the same at both decks, according to the 2025 data from Open-Meteo: about 16:29 in December and 20:29 in June. I’d arrive 45 to 60 minutes before sunset. August and October were the clearest months, at 41 percent cloud cover, and May was the cloudiest at 74 percent.
| Month | Sunset (New York time) | Cloud cover | Sunshine a day | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16:53 | 53% | 7.4 h | 7 |
| Feb | 17:31 | 69% | 6.9 h | 9 |
| Mar | 19:03 | 54% | 8.8 h | 7 |
| Apr | 19:35 | 70% | 8.2 h | 10 |
| May | 20:06 | 74% | 8.4 h | 16 |
| Jun | 20:29 | 65% | 9.9 h | 12 |
| Jul | 20:25 | 55% | 12 h | 15 |
| Augclearest | 19:53 | 41% | 11.1 h | 6 |
| Sepclearest | 19:04 | 52% | 9.6 h | 8 |
| Octclearest | 18:15 | 41% | 8.4 h | 9 |
| Nov | 16:37 | 57% | 6.7 h | 10 |
| Dec | 16:29 | 64% | 5.9 h | 8 |
Sunset planner
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book this entry time (50 min before sunset)
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sunset, New York time
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typical cloud cover that week
Sunset and cloud cover for the same dates in 2025 at the deck (Open-Meteo historical weather (ERA5), 2025); sunset moves by about a minute between years.
The Empire State Building ticket is a visit to a landmark. It includes skip-the-line entry, the 86th floor open-air deck, the museum galleries on the building’s construction and the Art Deco lobby. Wikipedia credits the architects Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and dates the building to 1930 and 1931. If you like the story of a place, that is worth the extra money.
The One World Observatory ticket is a short show as well as a view. You ride the SkyPod, which the listing says takes under 47 seconds, then see the City Pulse presentations and the Sky Portal with a live image of the street below. The tower itself was designed by David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and its spire reaches 541.3 m. In the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory ticket comparison, the first sells history and open air, and the second sells height and a lower price. Neither ticket is a bad buy, and both list free cancellation, so the decision is about what you want to look at and how much you want to spend.
If the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory decision is still open, my guide to the best observation decks in New York covers the full field, and the Empire State Building vs Top of the Rock and Top of the Rock vs One World Observatory comparisons show how the third big deck fits in.
Yes. By Google Maps coordinates the two are 4.57 km (2.84 miles) apart in a straight line, so you’d take the subway or a taxi between them and not walk. I’d go to One World Observatory in the afternoon, visit the Memorial, then travel north to the Empire State Building at dusk. If you can’t choose between the Empire State Building and One World Observatory, doing both costs $80.57 for the two standard tickets.
Whichever order you take, book a slot for each, and check the official Empire State Building site and the One World Observatory site for holiday hours. Free cancellation is listed up to 24 hours before on the standard tickets, so you can move a slot if the forecast turns.
In the Empire State Building vs One World Observatory contest, I’d call it for the Empire State Building on a first visit, because of the open-air deck, the museum and the weight of reviews behind its ticket. I’d call it for One World Observatory if the price matters or you want the harbour and the 9/11 Memorial in one trip. Both decks are rated 4.7 on Google Maps, so book the view you want to remember.
Yes, as a viewing deck. One World Observatory sits at about 386.6 m, against 369 m at the Empire State Building, a gap of 17.6 m. The Empire State Building is the shorter tower overall, though: Wikipedia lists its full height at 443.2 m, while One World Trade Center reaches 541.3 m to the top of its spire.
For a first visit I'd book the Empire State Building: it has the open-air 86th floor deck, the museum and the most reviewed ticket, at 4.73 stars from 29,182 reviews. I'd choose One World Observatory if you want the lower price, the harbour and the Statue of Liberty. Both are rated 4.7 on Google Maps.
I think so, especially for the price. The skip-the-line ticket is $30.49, rated 4.63 from 13,487 reviews, and it is the cheapest standard ticket of the two decks. You get the highest deck of the two and the view over the harbour. The trade-off is that it is fully enclosed, with no open-air space.
Yes, if you want the classic one. The $50.08 Observation Deck and Museum ticket includes the 86th floor open-air deck, the museum galleries and the lobby. It is rated 4.73 from 29,182 reviews on GetYourGuide, and Google Maps gives the building 4.7 from 130,587 reviews.
For most first visits I'd say the 86th floor is enough, because it is the open-air deck with views in every direction. The 102nd floor is the enclosed top deck, which shelters you from weather. It is an option on some tickets, so compare the price gap for your date before you pay.
The standard ticket is self-paced, so it depends on how much of the museum and the deck you want. Guided tours with entry run 2 to 3 hours in my listings. One World Observatory's skip-the-line ticket lists 1.5 hours to a day of validity, so I'd plan about 90 minutes at either deck.
Yes. They are 4.57 km (2.84 miles) apart in a straight line, so you'd take the subway or a taxi rather than walk. I'd see One World Observatory in the afternoon and the Empire State Building at dusk. The two standard tickets together cost $80.57.