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This is a list of lists of telescopes.List of astronomical interferometers at visible and infrared wavelengths List of astronomical observatories List of highest astronomical observatories List of large optical telescopes List of largest infrared telescopes List of largest optical telescopes historically List of largest optical telescopes in the 18th century List of largest optical telescopes in the 19th century List of largest optical telescopes in the 20th century List of largest optical reflecting telescopes List of largest optical refracting telescopes List of optical telescopes List of proposed space observatories List of radio telescopes List of solar telescopes List of space telescopes List of telescopes of Australia List of largest optical telescopes in the British Isles List of telescope parts and construction List of telescope types List of the largest optical telescopes in the contiguous United States List of X-ray space telescopes

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List of largest infrared telescopes, by diameter of entrance aperture, oriented towards large observatories dedicated to infrared astronomy. Infrared has a number of challenges, especially for ground-based observatories but also in space. The near-infrared is similar to optical telescopes, although the longer wavelength infrared can also be related to aspects of radio and microwave astronomy. A major implication of looking at longer wavelengths are that infrared telescopes have a lower diffraction limit all else being compared to a visible light telescope, because the wavelength of light they are looking is longer. Secondly, infrared is heat, so the telescopes can be much more sensitive to emission of heat.

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Telescopes have grown in size since they first appeared around 1608. The following tables list the increase in size over the years. Different technologies can and have been used to build telescopes, which are used to magnify distant views especially in astronomy.

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List of largest optical telescopes in the 19th century, are listings of what were, for the time period of the 19th century large optical telescopes. See List of largest optical telescopes in the 20th century for the 1900s. The list includes various refractor and reflector that were active some time between about 1799 to 1901.

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The following is a list of the largest optical telescopes in the 20th century, paying special attention to the diameter of the mirror or lens of the telescope's objective, or aperture. Aperture rank currently goes approximately by the usable physical aperture size and not by aperture synthesis, although interferometers attained some of the highest angular resolutions at visible and infrared wavelengths compared to traditional telescopes. Diverging methods of construction and use for reflecting telescopes in that area make comparing synthesized aperture irregular.

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List of the largest optical telescopes in the contiguous United States ranks telescopes of North America, a continent in the northern hemisphere of Earth.

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List of largest optical telescopes in the 18th century, are listings of what were, for the time period of the 18th century, large optical telescopes. The list includes various refractor and reflector that were active some time between about 1699 to 1801. It is oriented towards astronomy, not terrestrial telescopes.

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List of largest optical telescopes in the British Isles is a list of the largest optical telescopes in the British Isles, including in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

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List of telescopes of Australia this is split between telescopes located in Australia, and telescopes sponsored by Australia such as a space telescope or foreign installation.

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This is a list of radio telescopes – over one hundred – that are or have been used for radio astronomy. The list includes both single dishes and interferometric arrays. The list is sorted by region, then by name; unnamed telescopes are in reverse size order at the end of the lists.

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This list of the largest optical reflecting telescopes with objective diameters of 3.0 metres (120 in) or greater is sorted by aperture, which is a measure of the light-gathering power and resolution of a reflecting telescope. The mirrors themselves can be larger than the aperture, and some telescopes may use aperture synthesis through interferometry. Telescopes designed to be used as optical astronomical interferometers such as the Keck I and II used together as the Keck Interferometer can reach higher resolutions, although at a narrower range of observations. When the two mirrors are on one mount, the combined mirror spacing of the Large Binocular Telescope (22.8 m) allows fuller use of the aperture synthesis.

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Refracting telescopes use a lens to focus light. The largest practical functioning refracting telescope is the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope, which is used today for solar observations. Second is the Yerkes Observatory 40 inch (102 cm) refractor, used for astronomical and scientific observation for over a century, and the next biggest is the James Lick telescope, and the Meudon Great Refractor.

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This list of space telescopes is grouped by major frequency ranges: gamma ray, x-ray, ultraviolet, visible, infrared, microwave and radio. Telescopes that work in multiple frequency bands are included in all of the appropriate sections. Space telescopes that collect particles, such as cosmic ray nuclei and/or electrons, as well as instruments that aim to detect gravitational waves, are also listed. Missions with specific targets within the Solar System, are excluded; see List of Solar System probes for these, and List of Earth observation satellites for missions targeting our planet.