Ranking topic
Best Cities for Data Centers
Power-first data center market evidence from CBRE H1 2026, plus sourced industrial power price, state incentive status and grid-market context.
Data updated:
Geography: CBSA (metropolitan statistical area), OMB Bulletin 23-01 (July 2023) — never city limits.
Publication status
Underlying Data, No Ordered List Yet
An ordered list for data centers will be published once the indicators most relevant to data centers are loaded. Until then, this page shows the underlying data.
Select a column heading to sort. Default view is alphabetical by CBSA title.
| State convention | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metro AreaCBSA 12060 | 7.21 cents/kWh | 18 of 50 | 3.2% | 3.4% | Georgia |
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Metro AreaCBSA 12420 | 6.12 cents/kWh | 7 of 50 | 4% | 3.6% | Texas |
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Metro AreaCBSA 14460 | 18.19 cents/kWh | 43 of 50 | 4.3% | 4.5% | Massachusetts |
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro AreaCBSA 16740 | 7.77 cents/kWh | 13 of 50 | 3.7% | 4.2% | North Carolina |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro AreaCBSA 16980 | 8.83 cents/kWh | 38 of 50 | 4.9% | 4.7% | Illinois |
Columbus, OH Metro AreaCBSA 18140 | 7.1 cents/kWh | 39 of 50 | 3.2% | 4.5% | Ohio |
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Metro AreaCBSA 19100 | 6.12 cents/kWh | 7 of 50 | 4.6% | 4.2% | Texas |
Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO Metro AreaCBSA 19740 | 8.62 cents/kWh | 33 of 50 | 4.1% | 4% | Colorado |
Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN Metro AreaCBSA 26900 | 8.15 cents/kWh | 10 of 50 | 3.4% | 3.8% | Indiana |
Kansas City, MO-KS Metro AreaCBSA 28140 | 7.87 cents/kWh | 12 of 50 | 3.8% | 4.3% | Missouri |
Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV Metro AreaCBSA 29820 | 8.64 cents/kWh | 20 of 50 | 5.4% | 5.9% | Nevada |
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL Metro AreaCBSA 33100 | 8.5 cents/kWh | 5 of 50 | 3.7% | 3.5% | Florida |
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro AreaCBSA 33460 | 9.15 cents/kWh | 44 of 50 | 4.4% | 3.8% | Minnesota |
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN Metro AreaCBSA 34980 | 6.21 cents/kWh | 8 of 50 | 3% | 3.3% | Tennessee |
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL Metro AreaCBSA 36740 | 8.5 cents/kWh | 5 of 50 | 4.7% | 4.1% | Florida |
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ Metro AreaCBSA 38060 | 7.9 cents/kWh | 14 of 50 | 4.8% | 4.3% | Arizona |
Pittsburgh, PA Metro AreaCBSA 38300 | 7.87 cents/kWh | 36 of 50 | 3.7% | 4.6% | Pennsylvania |
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metro AreaCBSA 38900 | 8.05 cents/kWh | 35 of 50 | 4.9% | 5.2% | Oregon |
Raleigh-Cary, NC Metro AreaCBSA 39580 | 7.77 cents/kWh | 13 of 50 | 3.2% | 3.4% | North Carolina |
Salt Lake City-Murray, UT Metro AreaCBSA 41620 | 7.86 cents/kWh | 15 of 50 | 3.5% | 3.7% | Utah |
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX Metro AreaCBSA 41700 | 6.12 cents/kWh | 7 of 50 | 4.7% | 4.2% | Texas |
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA Metro AreaCBSA 41740 | 21.53 cents/kWh | 48 of 50 | 4.7% | 5% | California |
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA Metro AreaCBSA 42660 | 6.61 cents/kWh | 45 of 50 | 5% | 4.6% | Washington |
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Metro AreaCBSA 45300 | 8.5 cents/kWh | 5 of 50 | 4.8% | 4.1% | Florida |
A low unemployment rate indicates a tight labor market, which can make hiring harder. It is shown for context, not ranked.
Market fundamentals · H1 2026
Capacity Is the Constraint, Not Business Climate
This topic is organized around power availability and deliverable capacity. The figures below are published market-wide findings, not estimates, and no composite ranking is published.
| Indicator | Value | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Primary market vacancy rate | 1.4% | Record low across primary markets. |
| Share of under-construction capacity preleased | 80.4% | Capacity is committed before delivery. |
| Future capacity available, all primary markets | Under 1,500 MW | Roughly six months of demand at the current absorption rate. |
| Investor survey selection, CBRE 2026 | Dallas-Fort Worth, 78% | Northern Virginia second at 72%. |
Source: CBRE North America Data Center Trends, H1 2026. Report. Vintage: H1 2026.
Market capacity detail
| Market | Inventory (MW) | Under construction (MW) | YoY | Vacancy | Preleasing | Asking rate ($/kW/mo) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Virginia | 4,496.5 | 2,420.2 | Not available | 0.2% | Not available | Not available | Largest inventory in North America; vacancy effectively nil. |
| Atlanta | Not available | 2,882 | 52.3% | Not available | Not available | Not available | Largest active construction market in North America in H1 2026. |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | CBRE's 2026 investor survey: 78% selected Dallas-Fort Worth as most attractive, ahead of Northern Virginia at 72%. |
| Phoenix | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | |
| Chicago | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available |
Source: CBRE North America Data Center Trends, H1 2026. Every figure carries the H1 2026 vintage. Cells reading "Not available" are not published for that market at this vintage and are not estimated.
Power and incentive position by metro
| Metro | State | Industrial power price | RTO/ISO or balancing authority | Data center incentive status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Georgia | 7.21 cents/kWh | Southern Company Services balancing authority | Statutory sales and use tax exemption program for qualifying data centers |
| Austin | Texas | 6.12 cents/kWh | ERCOT | Statutory sales and use tax exemption program for qualifying data centers |
| Boston | Massachusetts | 18.19 cents/kWh | ISO New England | No dedicated statewide data center tax exemption program |
| Charlotte | North Carolina | 7.77 cents/kWh | Duke Energy Carolinas balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Chicago | Illinois | 8.83 cents/kWh | PJM Interconnection | Statutory data center investment tax exemption program |
| Columbus | Ohio | 7.1 cents/kWh | PJM Interconnection | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data center equipment |
| Dallas | Texas | 6.12 cents/kWh | ERCOT | Statutory sales and use tax exemption program for qualifying data centers |
| Denver | Colorado | 8.62 cents/kWh | Public Service Company of Colorado balancing authority | No dedicated statewide data center tax exemption program |
| Indianapolis | Indiana | 8.15 cents/kWh | MISO | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Kansas City | Missouri | 7.87 cents/kWh | Southwest Power Pool | Statutory sales and use tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Las Vegas | Nevada | 8.64 cents/kWh | Nevada Power balancing authority | Statutory sales and property tax abatement program for data centers |
| Miami | Florida | 8.5 cents/kWh | Florida Power & Light balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Minneapolis | Minnesota | 9.15 cents/kWh | MISO | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Nashville | Tennessee | 6.21 cents/kWh | Tennessee Valley Authority balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Orlando | Florida | 8.5 cents/kWh | Duke Energy Florida balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Phoenix | Arizona | 7.9 cents/kWh | Arizona Public Service and Salt River Project balancing authorities | Computer Data Center Program (transaction privilege and use tax relief) |
| Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania | 7.87 cents/kWh | PJM Interconnection | Statutory sales and use tax refund program for data centers |
| Portland | Oregon | 8.05 cents/kWh | Portland General Electric and Bonneville Power Administration balancing authorities | Enterprise zone property tax abatements applied to data centers |
| Raleigh | North Carolina | 7.77 cents/kWh | Duke Energy Progress balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
| Salt Lake City | Utah | 7.86 cents/kWh | PacifiCorp East balancing authority | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data center purchases |
| San Antonio | Texas | 6.12 cents/kWh | ERCOT | Statutory sales and use tax exemption program for qualifying data centers |
| San Diego | California | 21.53 cents/kWh | California ISO | No dedicated statewide data center tax exemption program |
| Seattle | Washington | 6.61 cents/kWh | Bonneville Power Administration and Puget Sound Energy balancing authorities | Statutory sales and use tax exemption for qualifying data centers (eligibility is geographically limited) |
| Tampa | Florida | 8.5 cents/kWh | Tampa Electric and Duke Energy Florida balancing authorities | Statutory sales tax exemption for qualifying data centers |
Power price: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Annual, Table 2.10 (state average, annual); values not yet ingested read "Not available". Incentive status is shown as statutory context only and must be confirmed directly with the administering state agency.
Generation queue is not load interconnection
Generation interconnection and load interconnection are different processes. Berkeley Lab's Queued Up data tracks power plants seeking to connect to the transmission grid — as of the end of 2025, over 2,060 GW were active in those queues, and the median project built in 2025 took more than five years from request to commercial operation. A manufacturing plant or data center instead needs a load connection, governed by the serving utility's tariff and interconnection process. Timelines for load connections are not captured in the queue data and must be confirmed with the utility directly.
Relevant categories
What Will Feed This Topic
An ordered list for data centers will be published once the indicators most relevant to data centers are loaded. Until then, this page shows the underlying data.
| Category or factor | Current use |
|---|---|
| Existing inventory (MW) — CBRE, H1 2026 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| Capacity under construction (MW) — CBRE, H1 2026 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| Vacancy rate — CBRE, H1 2026 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| Preleasing rate — CBRE, H1 2026 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| Average asking rate per kW/month — CBRE, H1 2026 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| State data center tax incentive status | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
| Industrial retail power price — EIA Electric Power Annual Table 2.10 | Displayed as a sourced market indicator where available. |
Related ranking topics
| Topic | Status |
|---|---|
| Best Cities for Manufacturing | Underlying data only |
| Best Cities for Logistics & Distribution | Underlying data only |
| Best Cities for Industrial Growth | Underlying data only |
Sources used on this page
- U.S. Energy Information Administration. Electric Power Annual, Table 2.10, Year 2024 final.
- Tax Foundation. 2026 State Tax Competitiveness Index, 2026 edition (tax systems as of July 1, 2025).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment news release, Table 1, Released September 2, 2026; July 2026 preliminary and July 2025 reference months.
- CBRE. North America Data Center Trends, H1 2026.
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Queued Up: Characteristics of Power Plants Seeking Transmission Interconnection, 2026 edition, 2026 edition (queue data through 31 December 2025).
- Area Development, 40th Annual Corporate and 22nd Annual Consultant Site Selection Survey, Q1 2026. Category weights only; no composite calculation is published.
Composite calculations are not published. Figures shown are taken directly from the cited sources without adjustment.
All figures are reported at the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) level as delineated by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, not city limits. Where a series is only published at state level, that is stated in the indicator table. Full source provenance and category weights.