The swift increase in the height of residential structures has increased the need to have an effective lateral load resisting systems that can meet the serviceability, performance, and strength based design requirements during seismic and wind loads. The reinforced concrete (RCC) shear walls and composite core systems are still the most popular systems adopted. This review paper entails a critical performance assessment on both the RCC shear wall systems and steel concrete core systems composite in high-rise residential buildings. Critical synthesis of the current analytical, numeric and experimental research is conducted to evaluate their structural response concerning lateral displacement, inter-storey drift, base shear demand, ductility, energy dissipation, and the overall efficiency of the system. The review notes that RCC shear wall systems are economical and are characterized by high initial stiffness and economic viability in low to mid height buildings, but they have performance saturation, and increased seismic demand and reduced ductility with building height. Composite core systems, on the other hand, are better in seismic and wind performance, post-yield behavior, less concentration of damage, and better applied to performance-based design frameworks, especially in slender and high-rise buildings. The researchers find that tall residential buildings should be put in lateral system selection due to height-related performance goals instead of the traditional construction behavior.