25 Most Prominent Mountains In The World

What are the top 25 most prominent peaks in the world?

Wikipedia.org, defines topographical prominence as “the height of a mountain or hill’s summit by the vertical distance between it and the lowest contour line encircling it but containing no higher summit within it. It is a measure of the independence of a summit.” Basically this means how high a summit rises about the surrounding landscape.

The most prominent mountains in the world are scattered all over the globe and they are some of the most significant mountains on Planet Earth.

Let’s look at the most prominent mountains in the world:

1. Mount Everest

• Location: Nepal/Tibet
• Range: Himalaya
• Elevation: 8848 meters
• Prominence: 8848 meters
• First Ascent: May 29, 1953 – Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay

2. Aconcagua

• Location: Argentina
• Range: Andes
• Elevation: 6962 meters
• Prominence: 6962 meters
• First Ascent: January 14, 1897 – Matthias Zurbriggen

3. Denali

• Location: Alaska, United States
• Range: Alaska Range
• Elevation: 6194 meters
• Prominence: 6144 meters
• First Ascent: June 7, 1913 – Hudson Stuck, Harry Karstens, Walter Harper, Robert Tatum

4. Kilimanjaro

• Location: Tanzania
• Range: Eastern Rift Mountains
• Elevation: 5895 meters
• Prominence: 5885 meters
• First Ascent: October 6, 1889 – Hans Meyer

5. Cristobal Colon

• Location: Colombia
• Range: Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
• Elevation: 5700 meters
• Prominence: 5509 meters
• First Ascent: March 16, 1939 – E. Praolini, A. Bakewell, W. Wood

6. Mount Logan

• Location: Canada
• Range: Saint Elias Mountains
• Elevation: 5959 meters
• Prominence: 5250 meters
• First Ascent: June 23, 1925 – Albert H. MacCarthy, H.F. Lambart, A. Carpé, W.W. Foster, Norman H. Read, Andy Taylor

7. Pico de Orizaba

Location: Mexico
Range: Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt
Elevation: 5636 meters
Prominence: 4922 meters
First Ascent: August 1838 – H. Galeotti, N. Funck, A. Ghiesbreght, J. Linden

8. Vinson Massif

• Location: Antarctica
• Range: Sentinel Range
• Elevation: 4892 meters
• Prominence: 4892 meters
• First Ascent: 1966 – Nicholas Clinch

9. Puncak Jaya

• Location: Indonesia
• Range: Sudirman Range
• Elevation: 4884 meters
• Prominence: 4884 meters
• First Ascent: 1962 – Harrer, Temple, Kippax and Huizenga

10. Mount Elbrus

• Location: Russia
• Range: Caucasus Mountains
• Elevation: 5642 meters
• Prominence: 4741 meters
• First Ascent: 1874 –  F. Grove, F. Gardner, H. Walker,  P. Knubel

11. Mont Blanc

• Location: France/Italy
• Range: Alps
• Elevation: 4808 meters
• Prominence: 4695 meters
• First Ascent: 8 August 1786 – Jacques Balmat, Michel-Gabriel Paccard

12. Damavand

• Location: Iran
• Range: Alborz
• Elevation: 5610 meters
• Prominence: 4667 meters
• First Ascent: 905 – Abu Dolaf Kazraj

13. Klyuchevskaya

• Location: Russia
• Range: Kamchatka
• Elevation: 4750 meters
• Prominence: 4649 meters
• First Ascent: 1788 – Daniel Gauss and 2 others

14. Nanga Parbat

• Location: Pakistan
• Range: Himalaya
• Elevation: 8125 meters
• Prominence: 4608 meters
• First Ascent: July 3, 1953 – Hermann Buhl

15. Mauna Kea

• Location: Hawaii, United States
• Range: Hawaiian Islands
• Elevation: 4205 meters
• Prominence: 4205 meters
• First Ascent: 1823 – Goodrich (1st Recorded)

16. Jengish Chokusu (Pik Pobeda)

• Location: Kyrgyzstan/China
• Range: Kakshaal Too
• Elevation: 7439 meters
• Prominence: 4148 meters
• First Ascent: 1956 – Vitaly Abalakov

17. Bogda Peak

• Location: China
• Range: Bogda Shan
• Elevation: 5445 meters
• Prominence: 4122 meters
• First Ascent: 1981 – Japanese team

18. Chimborazo

• Location: Ecuador
• Range: Cordillera Occidental
• Elevation: 6263 meters
• Prominence: 4118 meters
• First Ascent: 1880 – Carrel, Carrel, Whymper

19. Namcha Barwa

• Location: China
• Range: Himalaya
• Elevation: 7782 meters
• Prominence: 4106 meters
• First Ascent: 1992 – China–Japan expedition

20. Kinabalu

• Location: Malaysia
• Range: Crocker Range
• Elevation: 4095 meters
• Prominence: 4095 meters
• First Ascent: 1888 – John Whitehead

21. Mount Rainier

• Location: Washington, United States
• Range: Cascade Range
• Elevation: 4393 meters
• Prominence: 4023 meters
• First Ascent: 1870 – Hazard Stevens and P. B. Van Trump

22. K2

• Location: Pakistan/China
• Range: Karakorum
• Elevation: 8611 meters
• Prominence: 4017 meters
• First Ascent: 31 July 1954 – Achille Compagnoni, Lino Lacedelli

23. Ras Dashen

• Location: Ethiopia
• Range: Semien Mountains
• Elevation: 4550 meters
• Prominence: 3997 meters
• First Ascent: 1841 – Ferret, Galinier

24. Volcan Tajumulco

• Location: Guatemala
• Range: Sierra Nevada de Chiapas
• Elevation: 4220 meters
• Prominence: 3980 meters
• First Ascent: ?

25. Pico Bolivar (La Columna)

• Location: Venezuela
• Range: Sierra Nevada de Merida
• Elevation: 4981 meters
• Prominence: 3957 meters
• First Ascent: 1935 – E. Bourgoin, H. Molina, D. Peña

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As you can imagine, tagging all of the summits on this list of the most prominent mountains is every peakbagger’s dream. To discover a longer list of the most prominent mountains in the world, visit Wikipedia.org.

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See Also:

• The 57 Ultra Prominent Peaks In The Lower 48
• 10 Largest Wilderness Areas In The United States