Christ the Redeemer vs Chichen Itza: taller by how much?
Christ the Redeemer measures 38 m (124.7 ft) from the ground up, and Chichen Itza measures 30 m (98.4 ft) from the ground up. That puts Christ the Redeemer at 1.27 times the height of Chichen Itza: 8 m (26.2 ft) of difference, 27%. Put the other way round, Chichen Itza covers 79% of Christ the Redeemer on the axis both are judged on. Christ the Redeemer and Chichen Itza are both written in tens of metres, and the 27% between them is the whole of the difference.
| Object | Real size | Axis measured | What the figure covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christ the Redeemer | 38 m 124.7 ft |
Height | Ground to highest point |
| Chichen Itza | 30 m 98.4 ft |
Height | Ground to highest point |
Both figures, Christ the Redeemer and Chichen Itza, come from the Size It Up measurement set, one real-world size and one measured axis per object, last checked in September 2026; outline provenance is listed on the sources page.
Why this one is hard to judge by eye
Christ the Redeemer sits in the range with no handy yardstick: too big to hold against anything you have carried, too small to need a horizon, so it and Chichen Itza end up filed under the same vague heading of very large. On the drawing above Christ the Redeemer is about 1.14 times as tall as it is wide and Chichen Itza about 2.06 times as wide as it is tall, so the two outlines fill the frame in ways that have nothing to do with the one axis being compared.
What each figure covers
Christ the Redeemer. The 38 m includes the eight-metre pedestal. The statue alone is thirty metres, which is the figure most often quoted without the qualifier that makes it correct.
Chichen Itza. Measured to the top of the temple that crowns the pyramid. Each of the four staircases carries ninety-one steps, and the platform makes the total three hundred and sixty-five.
Christ the Redeemer and Chichen Itza are both quoted as a height, which is what makes the ratio above a like-for-like figure.
What else is about that size?
Measured the same way, Christ the Redeemer at 38 m sits within two fifths of Boeing 737 at 39.5 m, Colosseum at 48.5 m and Arc de Triomphe at 50 m. Chichen Itza at 30 m has Mongo at 23 m, AT-AT Walker at 22.5 m and Oak Tree at 22 m for company, within two fifths. Swapping any of those in for Christ the Redeemer would move its ratio to Chichen Itza by less than 40%.