We will see in the next section that prominence, unlike elevation, is capable of being the sole criterion for generating a list. There are many lists of peaks that purport to show all peaks above a certain altitude or the highest n peaks in a certain area, such as the Colorado 14,000' list or the Colorado 100 highest. Any such list must face the criterion of whether to include a certain peak or exclude it because it was deemed a subsidiary of a higher nearby peak. It makes no sense to include every boulder, pinnacle, and crag, so the line must be drawn somewhere. Objective criteria are very important here because otherwise it can be impossible to reach a consensus in finalizing a list since the personal preferences of those with influence in preparing the list will inevitably come into play.
Prominence is a necessary criterion for deciding when to include a peak on an altitude-based list.
For the Colorado 14,000' list, a peak must have at least 500' prominence. Some lists also have a horizontal separation requirement, but a list whose pruning criteria are based strictly on distance and not on prominence would have several undesireable characteristics. We see, then, that even if prominence is not the primary criterion for a list, it is unavoidable as a secondary criterion. There are many lists which show the highest point in each of some set of geographic areas, such as the 50 state high points, the counties of a given state, or the seven continental summits. With some types of areas, particularly those defined by political boundaries, the high point is sometimes on the border where rising terrain continues into a neighboring area.