List of highest railways

This article lists the highest railways in the world. The table only includes non-cable passenger railways whose culminating point is over 3,000 metres above sea level, regardless of their location, gauge or type.

A train pulled by an NJ2 locomotive travels on the Qinghai–Tibet Railway.

For simplicity purposes, absolute elevation is the only criterion of this list, albeit two localities at exactly the same elevation above sea level can have drastically different topographic or climatic conditions. For example, the permanent snow line is located at sea level near the poles, at 3,000 metres in the Alps and at 6,000 metres in some areas of the Andes and the Himalayas. The tree line is also very dependant on the latitude, thus making comparisons between elevations difficult on a world scale. At those high altitudes, snow, cold, wind and harsh weather conditions make the construction and maintenance of the railway a challenge, resulting in high operating costs.

Before the opening of the Qinghai–Tibet Railway in China, currently the highest in the world, the highest three railways were located in the Andean countries of Peru and Bolivia. In the Alps, the Jungfrau Railway has the particularity of reaching an elevation that is higher than the local snow line.

For a list by country, without elevation cutoff, see List of highest railways by country.