How Much Does It Cost to Build a Data Center? The Short Answer, Then the Budget

The honest answer is "it depends on what you build", so here is the spread for a 50 MW project in Texas, before GPUs, from the SCR AI Build Configurator dataset:

Then decide who buys the GPUs. B200-class accelerators add about US$30M per MW, which is why a 100 MW AI factory in Georgia models at US$2.35B for the building but US$5.33B with GPUs. For five fully worked projects, see the cost to build a data center, 5 MW to 100 MW.

Here is where the money goes on a 50 MW powered shell in Texas with direct-to-chip liquid cooling, grouped into the phases you would see on a site budget:

Phase 2 is the big number on every budget. The cooling plant is the line that moves most with your choice of technology: liquid cooling costs more up front but is required above about 50 kW per rack.

• Build type. The single biggest lever before GPUs: US$6.1M to US$23.5M per MW, as in the table above.
• Location. Construction cost factors run from 0.86× in Arkansas and Mississippi to 1.30× in Hawaii, with California and New York at 1.22×. The same building can cost 51% more in the most expensive state than in the cheapest.
• Power price. It doesn't change the build cost, but it decides whether the site pays back: industrial rates in our dataset run from US$0.071/kWh in Texas to US$0.38/kWh in Hawaii. Compare them on the data center cost per MW by state page.
• Cooling and density. Air, rear-door, direct-to-chip or immersion; denser AI racks need liquid and a bigger cooling plant.
• GPUs. Optional for the building, but the largest cost of all when you buy them: 56% of a 100 MW AI factory.

The quote for the building is not the whole bill. These are the costs that catch first-time developers:

1. Waiting for power. Grid queues run from 26 months in Arkansas to 54 months in New York. Land, interest and staff cost money the whole time.
2. Large-load tariffs. Some utilities make big users pay for a minimum share of their contracted demand whether they use it or not: 80% for 100 MW+ in Georgia, 85% for 25 MW+ in Virginia and Ohio.
3. Sales tax on equipment. Most data center states offer an exemption; California (8.85%), New York and Hawaii don't, which adds millions to the fit-out.
4. The utility contribution. US$17.7M on the 50 MW Texas example, often left out of early estimates.
5. Soft costs. Design, permits and project management add about 9% to hard construction cost.

Our data center TCO calculator adds the operating side: energy, staffing and payback.

Every number on this page comes from one dataset, and you can run it for your own site. Pick a US state or Canadian province, build type, size, cooling and GPU class in the free live demo of the AI Build Configurator, and it shows the capital cost line by line, power cost, build time and payback in seconds.

Need a written answer for one location? A one-time Site Screening Report (CAD $950) delivers the same analysis as a PDF within five business days. Consultants, developers and brokers can also license the configurator and run it on their own website under their own brand.

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