Mass timber can be a credible structural option for tall buildings when a project can use its prefabrication potential, meet the applicable fire and building-code requirements, and demonstrate an environmental benefit on a clearly stated life-cycle basis. It is not a universal replacement for concrete or steel: results depend on the design, fire-protection materials, timber sourcing, and accounting assumptions, and hybrid systems may make the most sense.
What makes mass timber worth considering?
The case rests on three connected possibilities: lower modeled embodied greenhouse-gas impacts than functionally equivalent concrete or steel designs, construction that can incorporate prefabricated timber components, and a fire-safety approach recognized in modern building codes. Each is a project-specific proposition, not a guaranteed advantage. A fair comparison holds building function and performance constant and examines the structure, material quantities, protection strategy, supply chain, and life-cycle assumptions.
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Mass timber uses engineered wood products as structural components. The tall-building examples and assessments discussed here include mass timber designs alongside concrete or steel alternatives; they show why it is useful to consider timber as part of a structural system, including a hybrid, rather than assume every building must be built entirely from one material.
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How much lower are modeled carbon impacts?
A 2024 study by Vaibhav Kumar and colleagues compared nine modeled multifamily buildings: mass timber designs at 8, 12, and 18 stories with functionally equivalent reinforced-concrete and structural-steel designs. Its results change substantially depending on which life-cycle modules are counted.
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| Accounting boundary in the 2024 comparison | Versus reinforced concrete | Versus structural steel | What the figure includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cradle-to-grave modules A–C | 39–51% lower global warming potential (GWP) | 28–34% lower GWP | Modeled building life-cycle stages A–C; operational energy and water were excluded from the associated material comparison. |
| A–C plus module D treatment | 81–94% lower estimated GWP | 76–91% lower estimated GWP | Extends accounting to module D treatment of biogenic carbon and recyclability; this is a different boundary, not a like-for-like restatement of the A–C result. |
These are modeled results, not measurements from occupied buildings. Module D assumptions can make the apparent reduction much larger, so the boundary must travel with the percentage. Biogenic carbon stored in wood is an accounting consideration; it should not be confused with emissions avoided through substitution. The study is described by the USDA Forest Service.
Why the reference period changes the comparison
The same study found that the selected reference study period and fire-protection material quantities affect results. Its 60-year reference period generally produced GWP 11–21% lower than its 75-year reference period. This is a sensitivity in the model, not a prediction that a particular building will have lower real-world impacts simply because it is assessed over 60 years.
What a national scenario does—and does not—show
A separate 2024 U.S. adoption model by Prakash Nepal and colleagues estimated combined carbon benefits of 9.9–16.5 million tonnes of CO₂e per year across scenarios for higher-than-three-story buildings over 2020–2070. That is a modeled national scenario, not observed annual savings or a guaranteed result of replacing other materials. The authors call for further research on forest-product markets, land use, and total forest-sector carbon. See the USDA Forest Service study record.
Is mass timber safe for tall buildings?
Fire safety is addressed through tested building assemblies, structural design, fire-resistance ratings, and project-specific protection—not by the material label alone. The USDA Forest Products Laboratory reports full-scale tests examining mass timber’s contribution to fire, structural-member integrity, connection performance, protection at through-penetrations, and conditions for responding firefighters. The results supported code changes adopted into the 2021 International Building Code (IBC) for mass timber buildings up to 18 stories.
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The 2021 IBC introduced three construction types for fire-resistance-rated mass timber buildings, associated with buildings of 18, 12, and 8 stories. Those figures are not blanket approvals for any building of those heights. The code actually in force depends on local adoption, and a project’s occupancy, construction type, required fire-resistance ratings, allowable exposed timber, and design all affect what is permitted. The Forest Products Laboratory describes its work on its Fire Lab Science Team page.
What tall-building projects illustrate the design choices?
Ascent: a hybrid approach in Milwaukee
Ascent is a 25-story, 284-foot mass timber hybrid building in Milwaukee. The project has six parking levels and 19 residential and amenity levels. Its designers used timber alongside other structural systems, with fire resistance addressed through encapsulation or sacrificial-char design strategies as applicable. The project demonstrates that tall timber construction can involve deliberate combinations of materials and fire-protection strategies; it does not establish that every structural element is timber or that timber construction is always cheaper or faster. The American Society of Civil Engineers’ January 8, 2024 account describes the project.
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Northeastern U.S. life-cycle assessment
A 2024 regional assessment compared modeled 8-, 12-, and 18-story mass timber buildings with concrete alternatives in the northeastern United States. Mass timber performed better in 13 of 14 assessed environmental impact categories. The assessment also identified gypsum wallboard—used for fire prevention under the 2021 code provisions modeled—as an impact contributor whose quantity increased with building height. It noted that local mass timber manufacturing could improve environmental performance. These findings are regional and model-specific, not a universal ranking for every project or impact category. The USDA Forest Service study record provides further detail.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesHow should a project team compare timber, steel, and concrete?
A useful comparison starts with equivalent building function and performance, then tests the design choices that can shift the result. Include the following in the same assessment rather than selecting a material based on a single headline figure:
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- Structural system and quantities: Compare the proposed framing, material quantities, and any hybrid options that suit the building program.
- Life-cycle accounting: State the modules included, the reference study period, treatment of biogenic carbon, and end-of-life assumptions. Keep A–C findings distinct from results that include module D.
- Fire strategy: Account for required ratings, encapsulation, allowable exposed timber, connections, penetrations, and resulting quantities of protection materials.
- Supply chain: Consider where timber products are manufactured and how the regional supply chain affects the assessment.
- Construction planning: Evaluate the actual prefabrication and construction sequence proposed for the project. The evidence cited here does not establish a universal cost or schedule advantage.
- Whole-building performance: Assess acoustics, vibration, and operational performance for the specific design; the cited comparisons do not establish universal advantages in these areas.
When does the case for tall mass timber hold?
The strongest case is a project where code-compliant fire design, structural requirements, regional sourcing, and a transparent whole-building comparison align. The published studies show that modeled mass timber buildings can have lower embodied GWP than comparable steel or concrete designs, but the size of that difference depends on accounting boundaries and design inputs. A hybrid structure may be the better fit where the building program or structural system calls for it. The decision should therefore be made from project-specific design and life-cycle analysis, not from a height limit or carbon percentage in isolation.
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