Key Facts About U.S. Data Centers

Pew Research Center illustration. (Cavan Images/Peter Essick and hh5800 via Getty Images) In the 2026 midterm elections, people in at least 38 jurisdictions across the United States voted to limit or ban data centers. Data centers have existed in the U.S. for decades, but their numbers have increased rapidly in recent years to support the development of artificial intelligence. As the number of these facilities has grown, the public has become more aware of them and backlash against them has intensified. Pew Research Center has done several analyses about data centers in recent years. Here are some key facts from these studies. About this research As data centers continue to make news, we did this analysis to quantify their growing presence in the United States and summarize Americans’ views of them. Why did we do this? Pew Research Center does research to inform the public, journalists and decision-makers. We have studied many topics related to data centers, including where they’re located, how Americans feel about them and how comfortable Americans would be having one near their home. How did we do this? The data in this analysis comes from previously published Center analyses. Follow the links in the text for more information about each analysis, including survey field dates and methodologies. For one of the analyses, additional information about data centers’ electricity usage comes from the International Energy Agency. There were more than 3,000 operational data centers in the U.S. as of February 2026, with at least 1,500 others in development. Existing data centers tend to be clustered together: 87% are in urban areas and 89% are within 5 miles of another data center. Virginia, Texas and Georgia lead the country in planned data centers Number of data centers in each state, by operating status Note: Planned category includes data centers listed as “under construction,” planned or “land banked.” Only the top 15 states by total are shown. Source: Data Center Map, accessed Feb. 19, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER Virginia, Texas and Georgia lead the country in planned data centers Number of data centers in each state, by operating status StateTotalCurrently operatingPlannedVirginia685398287Texas466296170California33127754Illinois262139123Georgia23594141Ohio22316657Arizona1849886New York1541486Oregon14211527Washington13512411Pennsylvania1297851Florida1281208North Carolina1137241Iowa1056441Indiana923854 Note: Planned category includes data centers listed as “under construction,” planned or “land banked.” Only the top 15 states by total are shown. Source: Data Center Map, accessed Feb. 19, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER However, data centers are increasingly coming to new areas of the country. Two-thirds of all planned data centers are in rural areas, and 39% are in counties that don’t currently have one. As of February, nine states had 100 or more operational data centers. Virginia had the most at 398, followed by Texas (296) and California (277). Virginia also had 287 planned data centers – far more than any other state. Loudoun County in Northern Virginia is known as “Data Center Alley” because of its high density of data centers. Around four-in-ten U.S. adults (42%) lived within 5 miles of an existing or planned data center as of February. This included 38% who lived within 5 miles of an operational data center and 4% who lived within that distance of a planned one. Americans have become more pessimistic about data centers’ impact on a range of things, according to a summer 2026 survey. Americans have become more likely to say data centers have a negative impact in various areas % of U.S. adults who say data centers are mostly bad for … Note: Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted July 20-Aug. 9, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER Americans have become more likely to say data centers have a negative impact in various areas % of U.S. adults who say data centers are mostly bad for … TopicJan ’26Aug ’26The environment3954Home energy costs3850People’s quality of life nearby3049Local jobs1524Local tax revenue1221 Note: Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted July 20-Aug. 9, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER We asked U.S. adults whether they think data centers are mostly good, mostly bad, or neither good nor bad for: The environment Home energy costs People’s quality of life nearby Local jobs Local tax revenue About half or more said data centers are mostly bad for the environment, home energy costs and neighbors’ quality of life – up substantially since January. Americans’ views of the impact of data centers on local jobs and local tax revenue were more mixed. Similar shares – between 21% and 24% – said that data centers are mostly good and mostly bad for these things. Still, the public became more likely between January and August to say data centers are mostly bad for each of these things. As of the summer survey, Americans who lived near a data center and those who didn’t live near one had similar views of the facilities and their impacts. Six-in-ten U.S. adults said this past summer that they would be not too or not at all comfortable with a new data center operating in their area. Just 7% said they’d be extremely or very comfortable with this, and 19% said they’d be somewhat comfortable. Even though data centers are currently concentrated in urban areas, the public’s discomfort with them cuts across community types. Majorities of urban, suburban and rural Americans said they would not be comfortable with a new data center in their area. 6 in 10 Americans would be not too or not at all comfortable with a new local data center % who say they would be __ comfortable with a new data center operating in their area Note: Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted July 20-Aug. 9, 2026 PEW RESEARCH CENTER 6 in 10 Americans would be not too or not at all comfortable with a new local data center % who say they would be __ comfortable with a new data center operating in their area Extremely/ VerySomewhatNot too/Not at allHave not heard of data centersGroupingTotal7196012totalUrban7205714urbanSuburban720639urbanRural6186014urbanRep/Lean Rep10245411partyConservative1225549partyMod/Lib7225515partyDem/Lean Dem4166810partyCons/Mod6225814partyLiberal310815partyHeard a lot111673heardHeard a little62666heard Note: Respondents who did not answer are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted July 20-Aug. 9, 2026 PEW RESEARCH CENTER More Americans said in a fall 2026 survey that they dislike than like political leaders who support building data centers locally. About six-in-ten U.S. adults (58%) said they dislike these leaders, compared with 9% who said they like them. Another 32% said they neither like nor dislike such leaders. Far more Americans dislike than like political leaders who support building data centers locally % of U.S. adults who __ political leaders who support building data centers in areas near them Note: Subtotals may not add up to totals due to rounding. No answer responses are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted Sept. 28-Oct. 4, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER Far more Americans dislike than like political leaders who support building data centers locally % of U.S. adults who __ political leaders who support building data centers in areas near them GroupNET DislikeDislike a lotDislike a littleNeither like nor dislikeLike a littleLike a lotNET LikegroupAll U.S. adults58%41%18%32%5%3%9%allRep/Lean Rep49%29%20%38%8%5%12%subDem/Lean Dem69%52%17%25%3%2%5%sub Note: Subtotals may not add up to totals due to rounding. No answer responses are not shown. Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted Sept. 28-Oct. 4, 2026. PEW RESEARCH CENTER Related: On Facebook and Instagram, Political Ads Are Increasingly Critical of Data Centers Some Americans blame data centers for their rising home energy costs, according to a March survey. Most Americans said their home energy costs had gone up in the last few years. Among those who said this, about two-thirds pointed to data centers using more energy as a major or minor reason why. Another 26% said they weren’t sure whether data centers were a reason for this, and 9% ruled out data centers as a contributing factor. Americans were most likely to blame their rising energy costs on utility companies wanting to make more money. More than eight-in-ten (85%) of those who said their energy costs had increased said this was a major or minor reason why. Still, data centers were a more common source of blame than government regulations or Americans’ own increased energy use. Across our surveys, Democrats and Republicans alike tend to have more negative than positive views of data centers. (In this analysis, Democrats and Republicans include those who lean to each party.) For example, both Democrats and Republicans were more likely as of August to have negative than positive views of data centers’ impact on the environment, home energy costs and people’s quality of life nearby. (However, they differed on whether data centers are mostly good or mostly bad for local jobs and local tax revenue.) In the same survey, 68% of Democrats and 54% of Republicans said they would be not too or not at all comfortable with a new data center in their area. Just 4% of Democrats and 10% of Republicans said they’d be extremely or very comfortable with this. In our fall survey, Democrats were more likely than Republicans to disapprove of leaders who support data centers (69% vs. 49%). Still, people in both parties were much more likely to say they dislike than like such leaders, though sizable shares also said they neither like nor dislike them. In addition, similar shares in both parties pointed to data centers as a major reason for their rising home energy costs in our March survey. Democrats and Republicans differed on some other potential reasons, including government regulations and extreme weather events. The amount of electricity that U.S. data centers used increased significantly from 2020 to 2024, according to an October 2025 analysis of data from the International Energy Agency. In 2020, U.S. data centers used 108 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in total, and that increased to 183 TWh in 2024. Their electricity use is projected to grow to 426 TWh in 2030. Data centers consume by far the most electricity in the U.S. and China Total electricity consumption by data centers, in terawatt-hours (TWh) Source: International Energy Agency, “Energy and AI,” June 2025. PEW RESEARCH CENTER Data centers consume by far the most electricity in the U.S. and China Total electricity consumption by data centers, in terawatt-hours (TWh) WorldUnited StatesChinaRest of world202026910862992023361154841232024416183102131 Source: International Energy Agency, “Energy and AI,” June 2025. PEW RESEARCH CENTER In 2024, the U.S. used more electricity for data centers than the entire Asia Pacific region (150 TWh) or Europe (68 TWh). In fact, the U.S. and China (102 TWh) together used 69% of all electricity worldwide that went to data centers in 2024. In the U.S., the electricity that went to data centers accounted for more than 4% of the country’s total electricity consumption in 2024. But in some states with lots of data centers, that share was much higher. In 2023 – the most recent year with state-level figures available – data centers used about 26% of the total electricity supply in Virginia and 15% in North Dakota, 12% in Nebraska and 11% in both Iowa and Oregon.