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The growing trend in the application of direct displacement-based or performance-based design, lays more emphasis on the precise prediction of design parameters such as the inter-storey drift controlling the performance level of the structure. Practising engineers employ different methods to record the inter-storey drifts in time-history approach mainly based on the maximum lateral deformation of the structure. In this study, a 15-storey concrete moment resisting building is designed using time-history analysis. Then reliability and accuracy of each method in predicting the maximum inter-storey drifts under the influence of three earthquake records, namely 1995 Kobe, 1994 Northridge and 1940 El Centro earthquakes, are investigated. Results clearly indicate that to choose the most critical drift to evaluate the performance level of structures, the absolute maximum drift over time should be calculated. Other methods based on the maximum storey deflection may result in unconservative design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]