A daring escape artist has channelled his inner Spider-Man to escape an apartment block fire, climbing down the high-rise building to safety.

The fire department responded to a blaze around 9:30pm on Thursday (local time) in West Philadelphia.

Crews were greeted by a harrowing sight when they saw a man descending along the outside of the building to escape.

Video footage shows him clinging to balconies and railings as he climbs down a number of floors to ground level, before crews helped him down.

CNN affiliate WPVI reported the fire was believed to have been started by a garbage compactor.

No injuries were reported.