To reduce wind loads on high-rise buildings, a new active aerodynamic control method named steady suction on the top of the building was introduced. The effects of free-end leading edge steady suction on the aerodynamic forces and free-end separation of a finite-length square cylinder were experimentally investigated in a wind tunnel. Flow visualization and flow field measurement were utilized to reveal the control mechanism. The dependence of aerodynamic forces on the suction ratio Q(=U/U_∞) was studied. The pressure distribution and the shear flow above the free end were compared in detail for Q=0, 1 and 3. The results show that the slot suction changes the flow separation on the free end significantly and also the aerodynamic forces on the whole cylinder span. The best control result appears at Q=1, with the fluctuation drag and lift reduced by 17.8% and 45.5%, respectively. At this suction ratio, the flow separation at the leading edge is weakened with reattachment and strong turbulence fluctuation presence on the free end, which results in strong momentum transport between the free-end shear flow and the wake and suppresses the vortex shedding and aerodynamic forces efficiently.