The best architecture firms in NYC in 2026 are SOM, designers of One World Trade Center; KPF, behind Hudson Yards and One Vanderbilt; Robert A.M. Stern Architects, known for 15 Central Park West; SHoP; Diller Scofidio + Renfro, co-designers of the High Line; Selldorf Architects; and BIG's New York office. For a home renovation, look for a smaller residential practice.
The firm behind One World Trade Center and the new Penn Station's Moynihan Train Hall.
SOM is one of the world's most influential architecture and engineering firms. In New York its work includes One World Trade Center, the Moynihan Train Hall and, historically, landmarks of postwar Modernism such as Lever House.
It works at the largest scales.
Designers of One Vanderbilt and much of Hudson Yards.
KPF, founded in New York in 1976, designed One Vanderbilt beside Grand Central and several towers at Hudson Yards, as well as supertall buildings around the world.
It specializes in commercial towers and large mixed-use districts.
Master of the new classical residential tower — 15 Central Park West and 220 Central Park South.
Robert A.M. Stern Architects is known for residential towers that evoke prewar New York, including 15 Central Park West and 220 Central Park South, among the most valuable addresses in the city.
It also designs university and civic buildings.
Designers of the ultra-slender Steinway Tower and Barclays Center.
SHoP designed 111 West 57th Street (the Steinway Tower), one of the most slender skyscrapers in the world, as well as the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and the American Copper Buildings.
It is known for technically inventive facades.
Co-designers of the High Line and the Shed at Hudson Yards.
Diller Scofidio + Renfro co-designed the High Line with James Corner Field Operations, transformed Lincoln Center and designed the Shed at Hudson Yards and the expanded MoMA with Gensler.
It is one of the leading cultural architects in the world.
Refined museum, gallery and residential design — including the Frick's renovation.
Annabelle Selldorf's firm is known for calm, precise spaces for art, including many leading galleries and the recent renovation and expansion of the Frick Collection.
It also designs residential buildings and homes.
The Danish firm behind VIA 57 West and The Spiral at Hudson Yards.
BIG's New York office designed VIA 57 West, the pyramid-like 'courtscraper' on the Hudson, and The Spiral at Hudson Yards, among other projects.
Its buildings are some of the most recognizable new additions to the skyline.
For work that needs Department of Buildings permits — moving plumbing, walls or gas lines — you need a licensed architect or engineer to file plans. Co-op and condo boards also usually require architect-stamped drawings and an alteration agreement.
New York City's Local Law 97 sets greenhouse-gas emissions limits for most large buildings, with penalties for exceeding them. Owners increasingly hire architects and engineers to plan retrofits to comply.