There are 1,665 steps from the ground, or esplanade, to the top of the Eiffel Tower. This is the standard modern figure for the tower's complete stairway, although visitors cannot currently climb the entire route.
The public staircase reaches 674 steps from ground level to the second floor. The remaining stairs continue upward, but the section between the second floor and the summit is closed to ordinary visitors for safety reasons; visitors normally use an elevator for that final part.
The number can be confusing because historical accounts record 1,710 steps during the tower's early years. Gustave Eiffel and officials climbed that route in 1889 before the elevators were operating. The stairway was later altered, and the official modern total became 1,665. Thus, 1,710 is a historical figure, not the usual answer to the present-day trivia question.