Rising 396 m (1,299 ft) above the harbor,[1] the peak is named for its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined loaf sugar.

The form of the peak reminded them of the well-known resulting "sugarloaf" shape, and the nickname has since been extended to be a general descriptor for formations of this kind.

[6] A glass-walled cable car (bondinho or, more formally, teleférico), capable of holding 65 people, runs along a 1,400 m (4,600 ft) route between the peaks of Sugarloaf and Morro da Urca every 20 minutes.

[9][clarification needed] There are rock climbing routes on Sugarloaf that are mostly multipitch and are a mixture of sport and trad.

[16] Together, they form one of the largest urban climbing areas in the world, with more than 270 routes, between 1 and 10 pitches long.