<p>For evaluating the non-linear seismic performance of multi-story steel structures, the energy-based approach is the most exact and convenient method of assessing the performance level of buildings under the effect of earthquakes. The energy-based design is mostly used in low and medium-rise single-dimensional steel frames. Furthermore, the semi-rigid beam-to-column connection behavior is missing under real earthquake ground motions in the literature studies. The present work is based on the energy-based performance analysis of semi-rigid steel structures by using earthquake data. The 20-story steel structures used in the study are designed asymmetrically according to the Turkish Building Earthquake Code (2018) with rigid and semi-rigid connections. Withal, eleven real earthquake data selected and scaled for the analysis of the considered structures in accordance with the horizontal elastic design spectrum and relevant seismic parameters. The seismic energy demands were obtained as total input, kinetic, elastic deformation, modal damping, and plastic energy. Furthermore, the maximum hysteretic energy demands and the dissipation capacities of the designed structures are observed during the considered earthquakes. The energy-based analyses show that the semi-rigid structure has greater energy dissipation capacity as 93.67% than the rigid one. For the average total input and absorbed energy point of view, the semi-rigid structures performed 4.14–4.47% greater values than the rigid one, respectively. Furthermore, both rigid and semi-rigid jointed structures remained at the immediate occupancy (IO) level as expected. Finally, both analysis types, the energy-based and the static pushover, compared for the seismic performances of considered structures with their lower dynamic mass participation rates. According to the energy-based results, the structural systems do not encounter ruinous damages under different earthquake ground motions and there is no need to use a damping mechanism for steel structures.</p>