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| Mount Everest |
above
the
clouds
sagarmatha to nepal, chomolungma to tibet — the highest point on earth, where the sky begins
above sea level (2020 survey)
hillary & tenzing, first summit
summits recorded since 1953
from the archive
39 facts from
the roof of the world
mount everest is the highest mountain on earth, rising 8,848.86 m (29,031.7 ft) above sea level on the border of nepal and tibet (china). nepal calls it sagarmatha; tibet calls it chomolungma.
it was first climbed on 29 may 1953 by tenzing norgay and edmund hillary, and more than 13,000 ascents have been recorded since. the air above 8,000 m — the "death zone" — holds about a third of the oxygen at sea level. a nepal climbing permit now costs about $15,000, while a full guided expedition runs from roughly $45,000 to well over $200,000.
- height
- 8,848.86 m (29,031.7 ft) — 2020 nepal–china survey
- also known as
- sagarmatha (nepal) · chomolungma (tibet) · peak xv
- location
- nepal–tibet (china) border, mahalangur himal, himalaya
- first ascent
- 29 may 1953 — tenzing norgay & edmund hillary
- first w/o oxygen
- 1978 — reinhold messner & peter habeler
- recorded summits
- 13,000+ since 1953 (himalayan database)
- death zone
- above 8,000 m (26,247 ft)
- climbing season
- may; permit about $15,000 per climber
the mountain
01 — 06the highest point on earth, rising 8,848.86 meters — 29,031.7 feet — above the sea, as fixed by the 2020 nepal–china survey.
it sits directly on the border between nepal and tibet.
nepal calls it sagarmatha. tibet calls it chomolungma.
for many nepalese and tibetans, the mountain is a holy site, not a trophy.
lhotse, the fourth-highest mountain in the world, stands just to its south.
it is one of the seven summits — the highest peak on each of the seven continents.
the route
07 — 16a full expedition takes about two months from arrival to summit.
everest base camp, the starting point for most climbers, sits at roughly 17,600 feet.
the khumbu icefall is one of the most treacherous sections — a maze of unstable, constantly shifting ice.
ladder bridges span deep crevasses on the way up — narrow, flexing, and unavoidable.
the hillary step, a steep rock face just below the summit, was reshaped after the 2015 earthquake.
the kangshung face is the steep, rarely climbed route up the mountain's east side.
ice axes are essential — climbers use them to cut footholds and to self-arrest in a fall.
the right boots matter as much as the right rope; footwear failures end summit bids.
most climbers carry supplemental oxygen to fight the effects of altitude.
a nepal climbing permit costs about $15,000 per person (raised from $11,000 in 2025); a full guided expedition runs from roughly $45,000 to well over $200,000.
the firsts
17 — 25the first attempt on the mountain was a british reconnaissance expedition in 1921.
george mallory vanished near the summit in 1924 — his body was not found until 1999.
edmund hillary and tenzing norgay reached the summit first, on 29 may 1953.
the hillary step carries edmund hillary's name to this day.
lukla's airport is named tenzing–hillary airport in honour of the pair.
junko tabei became the first woman to summit, in 1975.
reinhold messner and peter habeler made the first ascent without supplemental oxygen, in 1978.
the youngest summiteer is jordan romero of the united states — 13 years old, in 2010.
the oldest is yuichiro miura of japan, who stood on top at 80, in 2013.
the danger
26 — 34the average temperature at the summit is around -35°c, or -31°f.
air pressure at the top is about one-third of what it is at sea level.
above 26,247 feet lies the death zone — air too thin to survive in for long, even with oxygen.
snowblindness, caused by intense uv radiation at altitude, is a common injury on the mountain.
summit fever — the obsession with reaching the top at any cost — has killed experienced climbers.
the 2014 khumbu icefall avalanche killed 16 sherpas; the 2015 earthquake avalanche at base camp — the deadliest single day on the mountain — killed around 18.
more than 13,000 successful ascents have been recorded since 1953, by over 6,000 different climbers.
since 2000 the death rate has fallen to roughly 1% of summits — everest is busier, yet statistically safer than in its early decades.
the mountain demands extreme fitness and deep experience; it forgives neither shortcut.
the people & the legend
35 — 39the sherpa are the ethnic group native to the region around the mountain.
renowned for their mountaineering skill, sherpas guide and supply most expeditions to the top.
the legend of the yeti — the abominable snowman — has shadowed these slopes for generations.
clean-up campaigns have hauled more than 10 tons of garbage off the mountain in recent years.
it remains a magnet for extreme adventurers — and unforgiving to the unprepared.
terms, defined
glossary- sagarmatha & chomolungma
- the mountain's own names — "forehead of the sky" in nepali, "goddess mother of the world" in tibetan.
- death zone
- terrain above about 8,000 m, where oxygen is roughly a third of sea level — too little for the body to acclimatise.
- khumbu icefall
- the shifting jumble of glacier ice above base camp, crossed on ladders and ranked among the route's most dangerous sections.
- the seven summits
- the highest peak on each of the seven continents; everest is the asian — and overall — high point.
- sherpa
- an ethnic group of the khumbu region whose climbers fix ropes, carry loads and guide nearly every expedition.
- himalayan database
- the authoritative archive of himalayan expeditions, used to verify summits and deaths.
everest is the highest mountain above sea level at 8,848.86 m, on the nepal–tibet border; nepal calls it sagarmatha, tibet chomolungma.
it was first climbed on 29 may 1953 by tenzing norgay and edmund hillary, and first without bottled oxygen by messner and habeler in 1978.
more than 13,000 ascents are recorded; since 2000 the death rate has dropped to about 1% of summits.
the air above 8,000 m — the death zone — cannot sustain the body for long, even with oxygen.
a nepal permit costs about $15,000; a full expedition runs from $45,000 to $200,000+, much of it resting on sherpa labour.
frequently asked
faqhow tall is mount everest?
8,848.86 metres (29,031.7 feet) above sea level — the figure jointly confirmed by nepal and china in 2020. it is the highest point on earth above sea level.
where is everest, and what are its names?
it sits on the border of nepal and tibet (china) in the mahalangur himal. nepal calls it sagarmatha, tibet calls it chomolungma, and british surveyors once catalogued it as peak xv.
who climbed everest first?
tenzing norgay of nepal and edmund hillary of new zealand reached the summit on 29 may 1953. whether george mallory and andrew irvine got there in 1924, before dying, remains unresolved.
how much does it cost to climb everest?
the nepal climbing permit alone is about $15,000 per person (raised from $11,000 in 2025). a full guided expedition typically costs $45,000 to $200,000 or more, depending on the operator and level of support.
what is the death zone?
the terrain above roughly 8,000 metres, where the air holds about a third of the oxygen available at sea level — too little for the body to acclimatise, so climbers deteriorate continuously and keep their time there as short as possible.
how dangerous is everest today?
more than 13,000 ascents have been made, and since 2000 roughly 1% of summits have ended in death — safer than the early decades, though crowding, weather and the death zone keep it lethal. the deadliest single day was the 2015 earthquake avalanche at base camp.
one mountain. a hundred years of attempts. the stories that made it legend.
- The Himalayan Database — the expedition archive (founded by Elizabeth Hawley) used for summit and fatality figures.
- The Kathmandu Post — the 2020 Nepal–China joint announcement of the 8,848.86 m height.
- The Kathmandu Post — the rise of the Everest permit fee to $15,000 from 2025.
- Climbing.com — expedition cost ranges and the long-term decline in the death rate.
- ExplorersWeb — on the 2015 and 2023 fatality records.
about this guide: written by NP Limbu for East Nepal and reviewed against the Himalayan Database and contemporary reporting. The height reflects the 2020 Nepal–China survey; summit, fatality and cost figures are current to the 2025–26 season and will be updated as new data is verified. Spotted an error? Reach us through the contact page.
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