Over 1,500 data centers are currently in development in the US, with 67% of these projects located in rural areas. This marks a shift from the existing infrastructure, where 87% of approximately 3,000 operational facilities are situated in urban regions. Companies like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, and Google are leading this expansion to secure sufficient power capacity for AI workloads.
The South is the primary region for new construction with 754 planned facilities, followed by the Midwest with 419. Texas, Virginia, and Georgia are identified as key hotspots. Nearly 40% of these new sites are being built in counties that previously hosted no data centers. Developers are increasingly integrating on-site power sources, such as natural gas turbines and battery systems, to bypass grid constraints.
Currently, data centers account for 4.5% to 4.7% of US electricity consumption, totaling 192 terawatt-hours in 2024. Forecasts indicate this share could rise to 9% to 17% by 2030. While these projects provide construction jobs and tax revenue, they also face local opposition due to high water usage for cooling, noise pollution, and potential increases in electricity rates for residents.
The scale of infrastructure is increasing, with 100 hyperscale data centers—defined as facilities requiring at least 100 megawatts—already operational. Another 120 are under construction, and 460 are in the planning phase. Some new campuses are designed at the gigawatt scale, which is sufficient to power an entire small city.
