This paper presents the results of an analytical study to evaluate the inelastic seismic response characteristics of multistory building structures, the effects of gravity load on the seismic responses and its implications on the earthquake resistant design. Static analyses for incremental lateral force and nonlinear dynamic analyses for earthquake motions were performed to evaluate the seismic response of example multistory building structures. Most of considerations are placed on the distribution of inelastic responses over the height of the structure. When an earthquake occurs, bending moment demand is increased considerably from the top to the bottom of multistory structures, so that differences between bending moment demands and supplies are greater in lower floos of multistory structures. As a result, for building structures designed by the current earthquake resistant design procedure, inelastic deformations for earthquake ground motions do not distribute uniformly over the height of structures and those are induced mainly in bottom floors. In addition, gravity load considerded in design procedure tends to cause much larger damages in lower floors. From the point of view of seismic responses, gravity load affects the initial yield time of griders in earlier stage of strong earthquakes and results in different inelastic responses among the plastic hinges that form in the girders of a same floor. However, gravity load moments at beam ends are gradually reduced and finally fully relaxed after a structure experiences some inelastic excursions as a ground motion is getting stronger. Reduction of gravity load moment results in much increased structural damages in lower floors building structures. The implications of the effects of gravity load for seismic design of multistory building structures are to reduce the contributions of gravity load and to increased those of seismic load in determination of flexual strength for girders and columns.