Top 10 Tallest Waterfalls on Earth

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A waterfall is a spot where water plunges straight down a cliff or river. The bigger they are, the cooler they look as the mist explodes outward on impact. That’s why so many travelers hunt them down. Some are insanely dangerous, some are pure majesty, and others are just ridiculously tall. Today we’re counting down the 10 tallest waterfalls in the world. Fun fact: there’s no single official way to measure waterfall height, so take this list as entertainment. I pulled the data from the overseas site “Safari Africana.”

10th – Brown Falls

Coming in at number 10 is Brown Falls in New Zealand. It drops 836 m inside Fiordland National Park. There’s no exact global standard for measuring height, but in New Zealand this is one of the biggest in the country.

9th – James Bruce Falls

James Bruce Falls hits 840 m, landing at 9th place. Located in Princess Louisa Marine Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada. It’s the tallest in North America, but the water flow is so thin that in summer it sometimes dries up completely. Canada really is the kingdom of winter, huh.

8th – Puukaoku Falls

The tongue-twister Puukaoku Falls takes 8th. Found on Moloka’i Island, Hawaii, USA. Almost nobody ever sees it or photographs it. Boat tours that get you close have only started running recently.

7th – Balaifossen Falls

Norway’s Balaifossen Falls ranks 7th. Total height around 850 m, with the longest single drop measured at 452 m recently. A straight ribbon of water that never touches the rock face.

6th – Vinnufossen Falls

Vinnufossen Falls is 6th worldwide and the tallest in Europe. In Norway, fed by the Vinnu Glacier. Total height 860 m.

5th – Yumbilla Falls

5th place goes to Yumbilla Falls in the Amazonas region of Peru. Discovered fairly recently in 2007 by a Peruvian research team. Measured with laser equipment; four or five separate tiers make it a classic tiered waterfall.

4th – Oloupena Falls

Oloupena Falls is the 4th tallest on the planet and the tallest in the United States. Also on Moloka’i, Hawaii, dropping 900 m. Much more visible than Puukaoku.

3rd – Tres Hermanas Falls

Tres Hermanas Falls (“Three Sisters” in Spanish) takes 3rd in Peru. Three massive streams cascade down the cliff face, making it a tiered waterfall. Height 914 m.

2nd – Tugela Falls

Tugela Falls in South Africa’s Republic ranks 2nd. Located on the Drakensberg escarpment. Originally listed at 948 m, but a 2016 Czech expedition re-measured it at 983 m. If that’s accurate, Tugela would actually be the world’s tallest, not Angel. The old data has stuck around, so it’s still officially 2nd.

1st – Angel Falls

The undisputed champion is Angel Falls. Venezuela’s top tourist attraction, dropping a mind-blowing 979 m. Inside Canaima National Park, it’s brutally hard to reach—rugged mountains, jungle, the whole deal. But if you love adventure, it’s absolutely worth the trip.

P.S. While researching, I learned the widest waterfall isn’t Angel—it’s Victoria Falls on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border: 108 m tall but 1,780 m wide, pushing 50 million liters per minute. Niagara, for reference, is 53 m tall and 790 m wide. So yeah, size isn’t just height!