Surging Demand for Data Infrastructure Fuels Real Estate Transformation Across Global Data Center Markets According to Cushman & Wakefield

Global Data Center markets are seeing surging demand due to relentless growth and expansion of cloud computing and AI workloads according to the latest report by Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK). The report, which analyzes 97 global markets, highlights how power access, land acquisition, and infrastructure have emerged as critical variables shaping where and how data center facilities are being built.

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“We expect total capacity to continue its incredible growth trajectory across all global regions, with each expected to at least double based on the current development pipelines,” said John McWilliams, Head of Data Center Insights. “The industry experienced rapid expansion throughout the past year, a trend we expect to continue into 2025 and 2026. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), which gained prominence in 2022, are key drivers of this demand now and into the future.”

Key trends include:

• Land Demand and Suburban Shift: Larger site acquisitions for phased campus developments are becoming the norm, pushing data center projects away from urban cores and into suburban and rural areas. Virginia, Phoenix, and Sydney rank among the top markets for land availability, as developers prioritize locations that support scalability and power integration.
• Record Pipeline Growth: The Americas lead in planned data center capacity, with Virginia boasting a staggering 15.4GW in its development pipeline. Land values remain a top consideration in mature markets, driving greater attention to more cost-effective emerging locations like Johor and Pennsylvania.
• Powered Land Becomes Gold Standard: Land with pre-secured utility commitments is in high demand, with developers and even non-traditional buyers like electric vehicle and chip manufacturers competing for sites. These parcels offer a guaranteed path to power amid rising power constraints and long utility lead times.
• Investment Surges Across Real Estate Spectrum: The sector continues to attract significant institutional investment, with a sharp rise in joint ventures, mergers, and acquisition activity across colocation, hyperscale, and infrastructure outfits. Recently capitalized firms are increasingly targeting both established and emerging markets, fueling rapid pipeline growth and positioning data centers as one of the fastest-growing real estate asset classes globally.
• Land Pricing and Competition Intensify: While the Americas enjoy lower land costs overall, increased competition in top-tier markets has driven pricing upward. Midwestern U.S. markets like Indianapolis and Iowa remain among the most affordable, attracting spillover demand from more expensive neighbors.

While power availability and capacity in the data center construction pipeline are key factors in identifying the top data center markets worldwide, the 2025 edition of Cushman & Wakefield’s Global Data Center Market Comparison analyzes 20 critical variables tailored to hyperscale and colocation operators, occupiers, and developers across 97 global data center markets.

Established Markets Rankings:

AMERICAS	APAC	EMEA
1. Virginia	Beijing	London
2. Phoenix	Shanghai	Frankfurt
3. Dallas	Sydney	Amsterdam
4. Atlanta	Johor	Paris
5. Oregon	Melbourne	Madrid
6. Columbus	Guangzhou	Milan
7. Salt Lake City	Mumbai	Stockholm
8. Chicago	Osaka	Dublin
9. Carolinas	Seoul	Brussels
10. Sao Paulo	Singapore	Johannesburg

Emerging Markets Rankings:

AMERICAS	APAC	EMEA
1. Austin/San Antonio	Auckland	Abu Dhabi
2. Iowa	Brisbane	Dubai
3. Pennsylvania	Busan	Berlin
4. Reno	Pune	Helsinki
5. Minneapolis	Bengaluru	Zurich
6. Kansas City	Perth	Munich
7. Nashville	Canberra	Oslo
8. Indianapolis	Taipei	Warsaw
9. Central Washington	Batam	Reykjavik
10. Santiago	Hanoi	Tel Aviv

The 2025 report emphasizes that while mature markets like Virginia, Beijing, and London continue to dominate, rising land costs and regulatory restrictions are opening doors for emerging regions poised to redefine the global data center map.

“The next frontier isn’t just about connectivity, it's about access to scalable land, power infrastructure, and favorable economics,” said McWilliams. “Emerging markets are gaining traction, but established hubs continue to lead the way, backed by larger development pipelines, mature infrastructure, and steady demand that keeps them at the center of global data center activity.”

For more information or to download the full report, visit: https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights/global-data-center-market-comparison

About Cushman & Wakefield

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) is a leading global commercial real estate services firm for property owners and occupiers with approximately 52,000 employees in nearly 400 offices and 60 countries. In 2024, the firm reported revenue of $9.4 billion across its core service lines of Services, Leasing, Capital markets, and Valuation and other. Built around the belief that Better never settles, the firm receives numerous industry and business accolades for its award-winning culture. For additional information, visit www.cushmanwakefield.com.

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