How are floors counted in a building?

SKYDB Definitions may recognize a floor count differently from what the building's owner publishes. Many buildings have their own numbering systems inside, but SKYDB Definitions uses a standardized counting method which counts each occupiable level as one floor. Some things to watch out for:

• Many buildings in the U.S. skip the 13th floor; this does not mean there is no 13th floor, it just means they call the thirteenth floor "14". SKYDB Definitions lists it as the 13th floor regardless, because it is concerned with the actual physical property of the building. Similarly, many Chinese buildings skip 4, 14, 24, etc., but SKYDB Definitions counts the floors normally.
• In Europe and South America, most countries start counting at the 2nd floor level, calling the ground floor the "Erdgeschoß", "Planta baja", or similar in the local language. SKYDB Definitions always counts the ground floor as 1. Some buildings, mainly hotels, start their numbering artificially high. For example, the first level of rooms may sit on top of 5 levels of parking but be called the 12th floor. SKYDB Definitions ignores these idiosyncratic numbering systems and counts the floors from outside like any other building.
• SKYDB Definitions counts full-width mechanical floors, mezzanines, and unused spaces as whole floors. Some building owners or elevator buttons do not recognize these. However, if a mechanical space on top of a building is set back, SKYDB Definitions does not count it as a floor.

Please see the guidelines for floor counts for more details.