This building is identical in size, orientation and architecture to the Templo Mayor of Tenayuca and Tenochtitlan, which in its same stage preserves part of the shrines dedicated to Tlaloc and Huitzilopochtli. The name is due to the fact that it is the main temple within the Mexica ceremonial precinct. It was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli, whose shrine was located in the southern half of the building, and to Tlaloc, who was worshiped in the northern half.

The Great Temple of Tlatelolco was built from a platform from which four staggered and superimposed pyramidal bodies were deployed, on top of which stood the shrines of each deity. In the lateral and back facades of the building a series of glyphs carved in stone can be appreciated, one hundred decorating the side of Huitzilopochtli and fifty that of Tláloc. Like the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan, the Tlatelolco Temple has seven complete construction stages and two extensions of its main facade, as evidenced by the stairways distributed one after another and oriented to the west.