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Ranked: Top 50 Data Center Markets by Power Consumption

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This graphic highlights the biggest data center markets in the world by electricity consumption.

Top 50 Data Center Markets by Power Consumption

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, 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.

RankData Center MarketCountryCapacity (MW)
1Northern Virginia🇺🇸 United States2,552
2Beijing🇨🇳 China1,799
3London🇬🇧 United Kingdom1,053
4Singapore🇸🇬 Singapore876
5Tokyo🇯🇵 Japan865
6Frankfurt🇩🇪 Germany864
7Shanghai🇨🇳 China725
8Sydney🇦🇺 Australia667
9Dallas🇺🇸 United States654
10Silicon Valley🇺🇸 United States615
11Phoenix🇺🇸 United States615
12Chicago🇺🇸 United States555
13Amsterdam🇳🇱 Netherlands531
14Hong Kong🇭🇰 Hong Kong417
15New York City - Northern New Jersey🇺🇸 United States392
16Paris🇫🇷 France391
17Portland🇺🇸 United States382
18Mumbai🇮🇳 India380
19Atlanta🇺🇸 United States360
20Seoul🇰🇷 South Korea330
21Dublin🇮🇪 Ireland304
22Toronto🇨🇦 Canada267
23Osaka🇯🇵 Japan241
24Los Angeles🇺🇸 United States206
25Salt Lake City🇺🇸 United States203
26Las Vegas🇺🇸 United States173
27Johannesburg🇿🇦 South Africa161
28Querétaro🇲🇽 Mexico150
29Melbourne🇦🇺 Australia149
30Jakarta🇮🇩 Indonesia144
31Montreal🇨🇦 Canada127
32São Paulo🇧🇷 Brazil122
33Madrid🇪🇸 Spain120
34Milan🇮🇹 Italy111
35Zurich🇨🇭 Switzerland111
36Delhi🇮🇳 India110
37Seattle🇺🇸 United States105
38Boston🇺🇸 United States95
39Reykjavík🇮🇸 Iceland88
40Kuala Lumpur🇲🇾 Malaysia87
41Warsaw🇵🇱 Poland86
42Denver🇺🇸 United States78
43Stockholm🇸🇪 Sweden74
44Munich🇩🇪 Germany67
45Santiago🇨🇱 Chile61
46Berlin🇩🇪 Germany60
47Chennai🇮🇳 India57
48Marseille🇫🇷 France50
49Oslo🇳🇴 Norway48
50Columbus🇺🇸 United States41

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.

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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Technology

Charted: How Much Bitcoin is One Ethereum Worth?

Ethereum’s value relative to bitcoin (ETH/BTC) is at multi-year lows. Could this indicate an impending ethereum rally?

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Visualizing the Ethereum to Bitcoin Ratio (2015-2024)

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

The value of ethereum compared to bitcoin recently hit a three-year low, but a reversal could be on the horizon following Trump’s election victory.

The second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap behind bitcoin, ethereum has historically followed bitcoin’s price movements against the U.S. dollar with more volatility.

This graphic uses data from TradingView to show the ETH/BTC ratio, a key barometer of the cryptocurrency market’s interest and demand for altcoins (alternative cryptocurrencies besides bitcoin and ethereum), which can be purchased using ETH on the Ethereum blockchain.

How Has the ETH/BTC Ratio Changed Over Time?

Today, the second-largest cryptocurrency has returned 32% year-to-date against the U.S. dollar while bitcoin has climbed 83% to reach about $77,000 as of November 8th.

Overall, the ETH/BTC ratio has declined sharply since its highs in September 2022, when the Ethereum blockchain updated to a proof-of-stake network to improve security and energy efficiency.

While investor optimism leading up to this event pushed ethereum’s prices higher, interest waned after the event. This coincided with a broader crypto winter in 2022, with investors turning to bitcoin or other safer assets.

DateEthereum / Bitcoin Ratio
Nov 5 20240.035
Oct 20240.039
Sep 20240.042
Aug 20240.048
Jul 20240.054
Jun 20240.054
May 20240.049
Apr 20240.049
Mar 20240.055
Feb 20240.054
Jan 20240.052
Dec 20230.052
Nov 20230.054
Oct 20230.060
Sep 20230.063
Aug 20230.063
Jul 20230.063
Jun 20230.070
May 20230.066
Apr 20230.065
Mar 20230.070
Feb 20230.071
Jan 20230.073
Dec 20220.074
Nov 20220.076
Oct 20220.067
Sep 20220.079
Aug 20220.071
Jul 20220.056
Jun 20220.060
May 20220.074
Apr 20220.076
Feb 20220.073
Jan 20220.081
Dec 20210.085
Nov 20210.073
Oct 20210.071
Sep 20210.079
Aug 20210.069
Jul 20210.065
Jun 20210.074
May 20210.060
Apr 20210.035
Mar 20210.032
Feb 20210.045
Jan 20210.030
Dec 20200.030
Nov 20200.028
Oct 20200.033
Sep 20200.033
Aug 20200.034
Jul 20200.025
Jun 20200.025
May 20200.023
Apr 20200.021
Mar 20200.026
Feb 20200.021
Jan 20200.018
Dec 20190.020
Nov 20190.020
Oct 20190.021
Sep 20190.017
Aug 20190.020
Jul 20190.026
Jun 20190.032
May 20190.029
Apr 20190.032
Mar 20190.034
Feb 20190.031
Jan 20190.039
Dec 20180.027
Nov 20180.033
Oct 20180.034
Sep 20180.040
Aug 20180.058
Jul 20180.072
Jun 20180.080
May 20180.080
Apr 20180.056
Mar 20180.075
Feb 20180.101
Jan 20180.063
Dec 20170.039
Nov 20170.040
Oct 20170.068
Sep 20170.076
Aug 20170.076
Jul 20170.104
Jun 20170.093
May 20170.054
Apr 20170.039
Mar 20170.015
Feb 20170.011
Jan 20170.009
Dec 20160.010
Nov 20160.016
Oct 20160.021
Sep 20160.019
Aug 20160.018
Jul 20160.017
Jun 20160.024
May 20160.022
Apr 20160.025
Mar 20160.023
Feb 20160.007
Jan 20160.002
Dec 20150.002
Nov 20150.002
Oct 20150.003
Sep 20150.006
Aug 20150.010

The last time the ETH/BTC ratio dropped this low, ethereum rallied 120% in the next two months. While institutional investors have largely focused on bitcoin, ethereum has attracted comparatively less interest, despite its pivotal role in decentralized finance.

What Drives Ethereum’s Price and Volatility?

Driving ethereum’s significant price gains against bitcoin is the increasing emergence of initial coin offerings and decentralized applications (DApps) that are run on the Ethereum blockchain

In 2021, the ETH/BTC climbed to 0.87 as interest in DApps gained renewed momentum. By the end of 2021, there were 2.7 million unique active wallets connected to DApps, and across the wider decentralized finance space, 60% were run on the Ethereum blockchain.

Fast-forward to today, bitcoin still dominates the crypto landscape. bitcoin ETF assets stand at roughly $70 billion, more than doubling over the past year. In contrast, ethereum ETF assets under management have fallen from nearly $10 billion to $7 billion as of early November. However, since November 6, ETF inflows have surged by $132 million in two days, signaling bullish sentiment among investors.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To learn more about this topic from an ownership perspective, check out this graphic on the largest corporate holders of bitcoin.

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