We live in an information-abundant digital world, where data is the new currency, and data centers are the vaults that protect and power it.

The amount of data created each year has skyrocketed from 2 zettabytes in 2010 to 44 zettabytes (44 trillion gigabytes) in 2020. This has surged demand for data storage and processing, leading to the construction of massive data centers around the world.

So, where are the biggest data centers?

In this graphic,Visual Capitalist’s Julie Peasley uses 2023 data from Cushman & Wakefield to shed light on the biggest data center markets.

The Biggest Data Center Markets

Today, it is estimated that there are over 8,000 data centers in the world.

Many of these centers end up clustered together due to beneficial infrastructure and provisions from local governments and utilities. They also need lots of power, often at least 100 MW for each center, making power consumption one of the best ways to measure total market size.

While a majority of these data center markets are in the United States, some of them are scattered across Asia and Europe.

Rank
Data Center Market
Country
Capacity (MW)
1
Northern Virginia
🇺🇸 United States
2,552
2
Beijing
🇨🇳 China
1,799
3
London
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
1,053
4
Singapore
🇸🇬 Singapore
876
5
Tokyo
🇯🇵 Japan
865
6
Frankfurt
🇩🇪 Germany
864
7
Shanghai
🇨🇳 China
725
8
Sydney
🇦🇺 Australia
667
9
Dallas
🇺🇸 United States
654
10
Silicon Valley
🇺🇸 United States
615
11
Phoenix
🇺🇸 United States
615
12
Chicago
🇺🇸 United States
555
13
Amsterdam
🇳🇱 Netherlands
531
14
Hong Kong
🇭🇰 Hong Kong
417
15
New York City – Northern New Jersey
🇺🇸 United States
392
16
Paris
🇫🇷 France
391
17
Portland
🇺🇸 United States
382
18
Mumbai
🇮🇳 India
380
19
Atlanta
🇺🇸 United States
360
20
Seoul
🇰🇷 South Korea
330
21
Dublin
🇮🇪 Ireland
304
22
Toronto
🇨🇦 Canada
267
23
Osaka
🇯🇵 Japan
241
24
Los Angeles
🇺🇸 United States
206
25
Salt Lake City
🇺🇸 United States
203
26
Las Vegas
🇺🇸 United States
173
27
Johannesburg
🇿🇦 South Africa
161
28
Querétaro
🇲🇽 Mexico
150
29
Melbourne
🇦🇺 Australia
149
30
Jakarta
🇮🇩 Indonesia
144
31
Montreal
🇨🇦 Canada
127
32
São Paulo
🇧🇷 Brazil
122
33
Madrid
🇪🇸 Spain
120
34
Milan
🇮🇹 Italy
111
35
Zurich
🇨🇭 Switzerland
111
36
Delhi
🇮🇳 India
110
37
Seattle
🇺🇸 United States
105
38
Boston
🇺🇸 United States
95
39
Reykjavík
🇮🇸 Iceland
88
40
Kuala Lumpur
🇲🇾 Malaysia
87
41
Warsaw
🇵🇱 Poland
86
42
Denver
🇺🇸 United States
78
43
Stockholm
🇸🇪 Sweden
74
44
Munich
🇩🇪 Germany
67
45
Santiago
🇨🇱 Chile
61
46
Berlin
🇩🇪 Germany
60
47
Chennai
🇮🇳 India
57
48
Marseille
🇫🇷 France
50
49
Oslo
🇳🇴 Norway
48
50
Columbus
🇺🇸 United States
41

With nearly 300 data centers, including many AWS servers, the Northern Virginia data center market is the largest in the world. Data centers in the region are estimated to handle more than one-third of global online traffic.

In 2023, Northern Virginia data centers had a combined power consumption capacity of 2,552 MW. That’s four times the capacity of the next closest American markets, Dallas (654 MW) and Silicon Valley (615 MW).

The second-biggest market, Beijing, has a measured capacity of 1,799 MW. Though it is currently the only market with an operational capacity of over 1,000 MW in the Asia Pacific Region, Tokyo (865 MW) appears to be catching up fast.

Europe’s biggest data center clusters are in London (1,053 MW) and Frankfurt (864 MW), largely due to demand from large local enterprises and organizations. It’s no coincidence that they are major hubs for government and commerce—the world’s largest data center markets are near capital cities, as historically, governments (and their militaries) were the first to invest in internet infrastructure.

Future of Data

Data centers will continue growing in scale and expanding into new markets to meet the demands of digitalization.

Already the wider adoption of artificial intelligence has changed where internet data is flowing. And with increasing digital demands, the amount of energy needed to power these centers also increases.

That has increasingly put the spotlight not just on companies and data center markets, but on the energy they’re using. With massive power consumption requirements, efficiency and sustainability become increasingly important, and not every market is prioritizing efficient sources of electricity.