At a glance
224 South Michigan Avenue is a 412,504-square-foot office building in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1904. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 87 out of 100 (grade A), a site energy-use intensity of 54.8 kBtu/ft² and 2,271 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 83% of the 320 scored office buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 87 (band A) |
| Site EUI | 54.8 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 109.8 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 2,271 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 5.5 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 3,616,847 kWh |
| Natural gas | 102,439 therms |
| Water use | 3,216 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 412,504 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:101891:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 87 | +3 | 54.8 kBtu/ft² | 2,271 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 84 | +2 | 60.6 kBtu/ft² | 2,396 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 82 | -8 | 62.6 kBtu/ft² | 2,579 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 90 | 57.6 kBtu/ft² | 2,628 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | — | — | |
| 2018 | 75 | -16 | 72.1 kBtu/ft² | 3,689 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 91 | +2 | 68.8 kBtu/ft² | 4,059 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 89 | -1 | 74.2 kBtu/ft² | 4,342 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 90 | +4 | 70.3 kBtu/ft² | 4,551 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 86 | 81.0 kBtu/ft² | 5,039 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
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Location
- Address
- 224 South Michigan Avenue
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60604
- Coordinates
- 41.87788, -87.64366
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- theMART, Chicagoscore —
Office · 4,131,093 sq ft
- 10/30 South Wackerscore 72
Office · 3,014,304 sq ft
- 320 South Canalscore —
Office · 1,797,756 sq ft
- 540 West Madisonscore 73
Financial Office · 1,222,281 sq ft
- 321 N. Clark Property, LLCscore 87
Office · 981,053 sq ft
- Skybridge CAscore —
Building · 875,999 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does 224 South Michigan Avenue compare with other office buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 387 office buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. 224 South Michigan Avenue's ENERGY STAR score of 87 compares with an average of 69 across the 320 that report a score; it scores higher than 83% of them and lower than 14%. Its site EUI of 54.8 kBtu/ft² is about 22% below the average of 70.4 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 5.5 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 27% below the group average of 7.5 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 412,504 sq ft, it is about 15% below the average floor area of 488,124 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1904, 52 years earlier than the group's average year built (1957). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 15,264 office buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 73 and a site EUI of 59.3 kBtu/ft².
How has 224 South Michigan Avenue's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for 224 South Michigan Avenue, covering report years 2014–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 86 in 2014 to 87 in 2023 (+1 points); its best year on file was 2017, at 91. Site EUI moved from 81.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 54.8 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 32% decrease. Reported emissions went from 5,039 tCO₂e to 2,271 tCO₂e over the same span (down 55%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 87 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 87 means the building performs better than about 87% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 87 falls in band A — high performer (85–100). Scores of 75 or higher meet the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification; certification itself is a separate, verified application that the disclosure does not record. In Chicago, 35% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. 224 South Michigan Avenue's 54.8 kBtu/ft² across 412,504 sq ft works out to about 22.6 billion Btu (6,625 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 109.8 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 3,616,847 kWh of electricity, 102,439 therms of natural gas and 3,216 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires 224 South Michigan Avenue to report its energy use?
224 South Michigan Avenue reports under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance, the legal basis of the Chicago Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record chicago:101891:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More office buildings in Chicago
- 33 North LaSalle Street· 411,612 sq ft · score 56 (C)
- City Hall, 121 N. La Salle St.· 411,500 sq ft · score 33 (D)
- 17 N. State LLC· 409,072 sq ft · score 78 (B)
- 1375 Fulton· 399,230 sq ft · score 67 (C)
- 211 E. Chicago Ave.· 394,230 sq ft · score 77 (B)
- 550 West Washington· 392,503 sq ft · score 91 (A)
- Office buildings in Chicago· 387 benchmarked
- All Chicago benchmarked buildings· Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
- Most efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Least efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Biggest emitters in Chicago
Frequently asked questions
What is 224 South Michigan Avenue's energy grade?
224 South Michigan Avenue scores 87 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band A, high performer (85–100) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does 224 South Michigan Avenue use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 54.8 kBtu/ft² (109.8 kBtu/ft² source) across 412,504 sq ft, including 3,616,847 kWh of electricity and 102,439 therms of natural gas.
What are 224 South Michigan Avenue's carbon emissions?
224 South Michigan Avenue reported 2,271 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (5.5 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is 224 South Michigan Avenue?
224 South Michigan Avenue is in Chicago, Illinois 60604. Its coordinates are 41.87788, -87.64366 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is 224 South Michigan Avenue and when was it built?
224 South Michigan Avenue has 412,504 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1904 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is 224 South Michigan Avenue covered by the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Chicago Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance.
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About this data
Source: Chicago Energy Benchmarking (Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “224 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/224-south-michigan-avenue-63f25429 (data as of October 2, 2026).