Every drop on this list is measured in degrees from horizontal, where 90° is a straight vertical plunge. Anything past that mark is called ‘beyond vertical’ — the track tips forward under the car so riders fall face-first instead of just straight down, which is what separates a genuinely steep drop from an ordinary big one.
G Force sits alone at the top with a 360° drop, more than double the angle of second-place TMNT Shellraiser at 121.5°. Below that, a tight pack of beyond-vertical drops between 116° and 121° shows roughly where current coaster technology tops out for a single first-drop angle — before the list settles into a long run of coasters tied at exactly 97°, a figure that shows up again and again across very different rides.
G Force and the top of the ranking
The gap between #1 and #2 here is enormous. Most beyond-vertical drops on this list cluster in the 97°–121.5° range, which is already an extreme angle to build and ride — steep enough that riders are held in purely by the restraint, not gravity pressing them into the seat. G Force’s 360° figure is a different category of drop entirely, describing a full rotation through the fall rather than a single beyond-vertical pitch.
TMNT Shellraiser, Takabisha, Green Lantern Coaster, and Crazy Bird round out the next tier, all landing within a degree and a half of each other at 120°–121.5°. That tightness isn’t a coincidence — it’s close to the practical limit for how far past vertical a track can tip before the drop stops adding intensity and just adds engineering risk.
| # | Name | deg |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | G Force | 360 |
| 2 | TMNT Shellraiser | 121.5 |
| 3 | Takabisha (高飛車) | 121 |
| 4 | Green Lantern Coaster | 120.5 |
| 5 | Crazy Bird | 120 |
| 6 | Cannibal | 116 |
| 7 | Timber Drop | 113.1 |
| 8 | Steel Hawg | 111 |
| 9 | Abyss | 100 |
| 10 | Ice Breaker | 100 |
| 11 | Saw – The Ride | 100 |
| 12 | Adrenaline Peak | 97 |
| 13 | Dragonfly | 97 |
| 14 | Eurofighter | 97 |
| 15 | Fahrenheit | 97 |
| 16 | Falcon | 97 |
| 17 | Huracan | 97 |
| 18 | Hydrus | 97 |
| 19 | Kikkerachtbaan | 97 |
| 20 | Speed: No Limits | 97 |
| 21 | SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge | 97 |
| 22 | Tantrum | 97 |
| 23 | Typhoon | 97 |
| 24 | Untamed | 97 |
| 25 | Vild-Svinet (The Wild Boar) | 97 |
How drop angle is measured — and what it feels like
A 90° drop is straight down; anything higher means the track angles back over the lift hill before the car falls, so for a moment riders are looking at the ground behind them rather than in front. That’s the sensation beyond-vertical drops are built for — a real hang-time moment at the crest before gravity takes over, on top of whatever airtime the rest of the layout delivers. It’s also why most of the steepest entries here rely on lap-bar or over-the-shoulder restraints built specifically for negative-g moments rather than standard bars.
Degree figures are also independent of height or speed — a shorter, lower coaster can post a steeper angle than a taller one if its drop is engineered that way, which is part of why compact steel coasters can compete on this list with much larger installations.
The 97° cluster and other surprises
Thirteen coasters on this list — from Adrenaline Peak and Dragonfly through Untamed and Vild-Svinet — are tied at exactly 97°. That’s not a coincidence of measurement; it reflects a widely used beyond-vertical drop template that shows up across many different rides and parks rather than one signature layout. It’s a reminder that steep-drop coasters aren’t rare, custom one-offs — a 97° first drop has become close to a standard feature for modern thrill coasters, even if G Force’s outlier 360° figure is what actually breaks the record.
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Steepest Roller Coaster Drops FAQs
What is the steepest roller coaster drop in the world?
G Force holds the record with a 360° drop, more than double the next steepest entry, TMNT Shellraiser at 121.5°.
What angle counts as a ‘beyond-vertical’ drop?
Any drop steeper than 90° is beyond vertical, since 90° is straight down. Every coaster in this top 25 falls at 97° or steeper, meaning the track pitches forward past vertical before the fall.
Are all of these roller coasters currently open to ride?
Yes — every coaster in this ranking is currently operating.
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