Abstract The distribution of Paleozoic reefs in the boundaries of the former USSR has been studied within the context of the stratigraphic record and relationship to paleotectonic elements and paleogeography. Four cycles of reef building have been identified: 1) from the Early to Middle Cambrian, 2) from the Late Ordovician to Frasnian, 3) from the Famennian to Early Bashkirian, and 4) from the Late Carboniferous to Permian. Each reef–building cycle starts with the accumulation of mud mounds, then after a brief pause, skeletal bioherms and biostromes, and finally well–developed shallow–water reefs. For each cycle, specific species of reef builders are recognized and that periods of intensive reef building coincide with periods of dynamic plate movements. The Paleozoic reefs of the former Soviet Union were deposited on various tectonic elements and experienced a wide range of tectonic histories. In cratonic and peri–cratonic settings, the main structural elements are summarized as follows: marginal and intracratonic depressions, intracratonic rifts, and shelf and passive margins. In oceanic settings, the main structural elements include microcontinents and individual stable blocks, and elements located adjacent to subduction zones and zones of volcanic activity. During periods of ocean expansion, the reef–building process became more dynamic and reefs were predominantly deposited upon stable structures such as paleocratons, microcontinents, and stable outliers. During periods of collision, the deposition of reefs upon tectonic elements related to subduction zones and volcanic activity is observed to increase. It is concluded that periods of dynamic reef building correspond with periods of accelerated tectonic movements in the Early Cambrian, Middle to Late Devonian, and Permian. Reef building within the boundaries of the Former Soviet Union reached its zenith during the Early to Middle Devonian during an intense period of tectonic rifting and drifting. Moreover, it is postulated that the emergence and development of skeletal reef–building communities was a response to significant rates of subsidence, the emergence of differentiated relief, temperature shifts, and the evolution of biotic communities capable of offsetting the dynamic subsidence through high carbonate accumulation rates.