By Nora Lindqvist · Updated · Affiliate links, explained in my disclosure
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt
NYC: SUMMIT One Vanderbilt Tickets
4.7 (61,289) · from $47.91
Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building is a choice between the novelty and the classic, and for a first visit I’d book the Empire State Building. It has the higher deck at 369 m against about 310 m, an open-air 86th floor, a museum and the most reviewed ticket. I’d choose SUMMIT One Vanderbilt for the glass rooms and a ticket that costs $47.91 against $50.08.
| Tour | From | Rating | Length | Free cancellation | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYC: SUMMIT One Vanderbilt Tickets | $47.91 | ★ 4.7 (61,289) | 1.5 - 2 hours | Yes | Check availability |
| NYC Empire State Building - Observation Deck & Museum Ticket | $50.08 | ★ 4.7 (29,182) | 24-hour ticket | Yes | Check availability |
| Midtown Manhattan Guided Tour w/ SUMMIT One Vanderbilt Entry | $74 | ★ 4.3 (206) | 2.5 hours | Yes | Check availability |
| NYC: Empire State & Flatiron Tour with Optional 102nd Floor | $99 | ★ 4.6 (24) | 2 hours | Yes | Check availability |
The two decks are only 0.76 km apart in Midtown, so the Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building decision is about the experience and not the neighbourhood. 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 Summit One Vanderbilt tickets and Empire State Building tickets pages.
| Summit One Vanderbilt | Empire State Building | |
|---|---|---|
| Deck height | About 310 m, per Wikipedia | 369 m, per Wikipedia |
| Floors | 91st to 93rd, per Wikipedia | 86th (open-air) and 102nd (enclosed, on some tickets) |
| Open-air space | Yes, a wrap-around terrace | Yes, on the 86th floor |
| Standard ticket from | $47.91 | $50.08 |
| Top ticket rating | 4.7 from 61,289 reviews | 4.73 from 29,182 reviews |
| Google Maps rating | 4.7 from 37,523 reviews | 4.7 from 130,587 reviews |
| Hours (Google Maps) | 8 AM to 12 AM | 9 AM to 11 PM |
| Time to allow | 1.5 to 2 hours | Self-paced on the standard ticket |
| In the view | Midtown, glass skyboxes, mirrored rooms | Midtown, Central Park, the Hudson |
Height favours the Empire State Building, by 59 m. The horizon distance is 68.6 km from its deck against 62.9 km from SUMMIT, using the standard horizon formula. Both decks rise above nearly everything around them, so you see the whole island either way.
What changes in the Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building view is what you are standing in. Wikipedia describes mirrored glass rooms and enclosed glass balconies that protrude from the facade, and the ticket lists Levitation, the glass skyboxes. The Empire State Building is plainer: an 86th floor terrace in the open air, with wind and no glass in your photo. It also has a trick the other deck lacks, because from SUMMIT you can see the Empire State Building itself, 0.76 km to the south-west, while from the Empire State Building you cannot photograph it. For the icon in the frame I’d choose SUMMIT; for the open air and the extra height I’d choose the Empire State Building.
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt is cheaper by $2.17 on the standard ticket: $47.91 against $50.08. That is about 4 percent, so I would not let it decide. The SUMMIT ticket is sold by the operator and includes all three floors, the immersive art, Levitation, the Apres bar and cafe and the open-air terrace. The Empire State Building ticket includes the 86th floor deck, 12 immersive galleries on the building’s construction history, the Art Deco lobby, free WiFi, tax and booking fees, and children under 6 enter free. Its 102nd floor depends on the option you pick.
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt
My pick: The SUMMIT default: $47.91, 4.7 stars from 61,289 reviews, all three floors and the open-air terrace, with free cancellation.
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$47.91
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
If you want a guide, each deck has one. The Midtown Manhattan Guided Tour costs $74 for 2.5 hours and includes SUMMIT entry, rated 4.31 from 206 reviews. One reviewer said it was unclear that entry was included, so confirm the inclusions before you pay. The Empire State and Flatiron walk costs $99 for 2 hours with an optional 102nd floor, but it has only 24 reviews at 4.6, so I treat that as a signal and not a verdict.
City Wonders Ltd. USA
My pick: A 2.5-hour Midtown walk with SUMMIT entry for $74; 4.31 stars from 206 reviews, so read the inclusions.
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$74
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
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 37,523, which tells me far more people pass through it. The SUMMIT listing keeps skip-the-line access for its Premium guided option, and the Empire State Building ticket is a skip-the-line or Express ticket depending on the option you choose.
Hours differ a little. Google Maps lists SUMMIT as open 8 AM to 12 AM and the Empire State Building as 9 AM to 11 PM, so SUMMIT gives you an earlier start and a later finish. Sunset is the same at both to within a minute, according to the 2025 data from Open-Meteo: about 16:29 in December and 20:28 to 20:29 in June. I’d arrive 45 to 60 minutes before sunset at either. August and October were the clearest months, at 41 percent cloud cover, and May was the cloudiest at 73 to 74 percent.
| Month | Sunset (New York time) | Cloud cover | Sunshine a day | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Janclearest | 16:53 | 52% | 7.5 h | 7 |
| Feb | 17:30 | 68% | 6.8 h | 10 |
| Mar | 19:02 | 54% | 8.8 h | 7 |
| Apr | 19:35 | 70% | 8.1 h | 10 |
| May | 20:06 | 73% | 8.5 h | 18 |
| Jun | 20:28 | 65% | 9.8 h | 11 |
| Jul | 20:25 | 56% | 11.9 h | 16 |
| Augclearest | 19:53 | 41% | 11 h | 8 |
| Sep | 19:04 | 52% | 9.6 h | 8 |
| Octclearest | 18:14 | 41% | 8.4 h | 8 |
| Nov | 16:37 | 56% | 6.6 h | 11 |
| Dec | 16:29 | 64% | 5.8 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.
In the Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building ticket comparison, SUMMIT sells the newer thing. Wikipedia credits Kohn Pedersen Fox and dates the tower to 2020. The listing adds an art experience, a bar and cafe, and upgrades with a signature drink or the all-glass Ascent elevator. Per the official SUMMIT site, the entrance is inside Grand Central Terminal, so follow the signs there and not to the tower lobby.
The Empire State Building sells the story. Wikipedia credits Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and dates it to 1930 and 1931, and it was the world’s tallest building until 1970. If you like the history of a place, the museum galleries are worth the $2.17 extra. Both standard tickets list free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
If the Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building decision is still open, my guide to the best observation decks in New York covers the full field. The Summit One Vanderbilt vs Top of the Rock and Empire State Building vs Top of the Rock comparisons show how the third Midtown deck fits in, and Empire State Building vs One World Observatory looks downtown.
Yes. By Google Maps coordinates the two are 0.76 km (0.47 miles) apart in a straight line, so you can walk between them or take a short cab ride. I’d go up SUMMIT One Vanderbilt in the afternoon, then go to the Empire State Building for sunset and stay for the lights. Doing both costs $97.99 for the two standard tickets.
Whichever order you take for Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building, book a slot for each and check the official Empire State Building site and the SUMMIT site for holiday hours. Compare each ticket page, Summit One Vanderbilt tickets and Empire State Building tickets, before you buy.
In the Summit One Vanderbilt vs Empire State Building contest, I’d call it for the Empire State Building on a first visit, because of the higher deck, the open-air floor, the museum and the rating of 4.73 on its ticket. I’d call it for SUMMIT One Vanderbilt if you want the glass rooms, a slightly lower price and the Empire State Building in your photo. Both decks are rated 4.7 on Google Maps, so book the view you want to remember.
I think so. The general admission ticket is $47.91, rated 4.7 from 61,289 reviews on GetYourGuide, and it covers all three floors, the glass skyboxes called Levitation and the open-air terrace. It is $2.17 cheaper than the Empire State Building ticket, though the deck is lower, at about 310 m against 369 m.
It depends on the view you want. Of these two, the Empire State Building has the higher deck at 369 m, the open-air 86th floor and the museum, while SUMMIT One Vanderbilt has the glass rooms and a lower price. For the whole field, including Edge, Top of the Rock and One World Observatory, see my guide to the best observation decks in New York.
For a first visit I'd book the Empire State Building, because of the open-air deck, the museum and the most reviewed ticket. One World Observatory is higher and cheaper but fully enclosed. I compare them in detail in my Empire State Building vs One World Observatory guide.
It is built as an experience and not only a deck. The ticket lists immersive art rooms, Levitation (glass skyboxes), the Apres bar and cafe and an open-air wrap-around terrace. Some extras, such as the all-glass Ascent elevator, are only on upgraded tickets. The entrance is inside Grand Central Terminal.
The listing for the standard ticket gives 1.5 to 2 hours, which is what I'd plan. The Empire State Building ticket is self-paced, so it depends on how much of the museum you want to read. Guided options with entry run 2 to 3 hours in my listings.
I'd book a slot 45 to 60 minutes before sunset, so you get daylight, dusk and the lit skyline on one ticket. The deck is open from 8 AM to midnight per Google Maps, so a late visit works. Cloud cover matters more than the hour: August and October were the clearest months.
Yes. They are 0.76 km (0.47 miles) apart in a straight line, so it is a short walk. I'd go up the first in the afternoon and the second for sunset. The two standard tickets cost $97.99 together, and both allow free cancellation up to 24 hours before.