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How much electricity do data centers use?

Reviewed Sep 22, 2026 · 5 sections · every figure sourced

Short answer

U.S. data centers used about 176 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2023, or 4.4% of all U.S. electricity, according to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory[3]. Its 2025 update puts 2024 at 192 TWh, or 4.7%[1], and forecasts about 649 TWh (11.8%) by 2030 in its reference case, within a range of 9.5% to 15.3%[1].

U.S. data center electricity use in 2024 (4.7% of U.S. total)[1]
192 TWh
projected share of U.S. electricity in 2030, LBNL reference case[1]
11.8%
households’ annual electricity, the IEA’s comparison for a typical AI data center[2]
100,000

The official numbers

The Department of Energy, summarizing LBNL's 2024 report, says U.S. data center electricity use rose from 58 TWh in 2014 to 176 TWh in 2023[4]. In 2018 it was about 76 TWh, or 1.9% of U.S. electricity[3]. LBNL's 2025 update estimates 192 TWh in 2024, or 4.7%[1].

The International Energy Agency says the United States has the world's highest per-person data center electricity use, around 540 kWh in 2024[5].

Forecasts to 2028 and 2030

LBNL's 2024 report projected 325 to 580 TWh in 2028, or 6.7% to 12% of U.S. electricity[3]. Its 2025 update narrowed that: a reference case of 464 TWh in 2028[1] and 649 TWh in 2030, equal to 11.8% of U.S. use, within a range of 521 to 843 TWh (9.5% to 15.3%)[1]. LBNL says serving the 2030 reference case would take about 148 GW of grid connection capacity[1].

Other forecasts land in similar territory. The IEA projects U.S. data center use rising by about 240 TWh, or 130%, from 2024 to 2030[5], and says data centers account for nearly half of U.S. electricity demand growth through 2030[2]. EPRI, an industry research group, projects 9% to 17% of U.S. electricity by 2030[6].

How much does one data center use?

The IEA says a conventional data center may be around 10 to 25 MW, while a hyperscale, AI-focused data center can be 100 MW or more and use as much electricity each year as 100,000 households; the largest under construction will use 20 times that[7][2]. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation notes traditional data centers were historically smaller, often under 30 MW[8].

Want to put a specific project in household terms? Use the impact calculator, which uses EIA's average household figure.

What grid operators are forecasting

  • NERC forecasts aggregate summer peak demand across North America rising by more than 224 GW over 10 years, mostly from new data centers for AI and the digital economy[9].
  • PJM projects a summer peak of about 222,000 MW in 2036, nearly 66,000 MW higher than today, compared with the 0.3% a year growth it forecast in 2021[10].
  • ERCOT (Texas) projects about 367,790 MW of demand by 2032 in a preliminary forecast, against an all-time peak of 85,508 MW in August 2023[11]; its large loads include data centers, crypto mining, industry and oil and gas[11].
  • Dominion Energy, which says it serves the world's largest data center market, reported a 2025 data center peak of 4 GW and forecasts 16.6 GW of data center demand by 2046, well below the 47 GW of contracted capacity it had as of July 2025[12].
  • EIA expects U.S. electricity use to grow 1% in 2026 and 3% in 2027, driven by large computing centers[13].

How efficient are data centers?

Efficiency is measured with Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE): total facility electricity divided by the electricity used by the IT equipment[3]. Uptime Institute's 2025 survey found an industry weighted average of 1.54, essentially unchanged for six years[14], down from 2.5 in 2007[14]. Google says its fleet averaged 1.09 in 2025[15].

What the Census record shows

Across the 72 Census projects with a published capacity, planned capacity totals 117.79 GW. These are planned, full build-out figures as published, not current demand. See utilities, grid operators and on-site generation by project.

Common questions

What percentage of U.S. electricity do data centers use?

About 4.4% in 2023 and 4.7% in 2024, according to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Its 2025 update forecasts 11.8% by 2030 in its reference case, within a range of 9.5% to 15.3%.

How much electricity does an AI data center use?

The IEA says a hyperscale, AI-focused data center can be 100 MW or more and use as much electricity each year as 100,000 households. The largest under construction as of 2025 will use 20 times as much.

Are data centers driving electricity demand growth?

Yes. EIA describes data center load as emerging as the dominant driver of long-term U.S. electricity growth, and the IEA says data centers account for nearly half of U.S. demand growth through 2030.

Sources

  1. United States Data Center Energy Usage Report: 2025 Update
    Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · 2026-06
    5 source excerpts
    “The updated estimate of data center electricity use in 2024 is 192 terawatt-hours (TWh), accounting for 4.7% of total U.S. electricity consumption.”
    “The Reference Case estimate for 2030 data center electricity use is 649 TWh, representing 11.8% of forecasted 2030 U.S. electricity use as presented in the 2025 North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Long-Term Reliability Assessment.”
    “This yields a Compounded Uncertainty Range of 521–843 TWh, equal to 9.5–15.3% of total U.S. electricity use in 2030.”
    “Meanwhile, our current Reference Case forecast for total electricity use in 2028 is 464 TWh, which falls in the middle of the range presented in the 2024 Report.”
    “Assuming a 50% average utilization rate, the Reference Case electricity use projections translate to 148 gigawatts (GW) of interconnection capacity needed to serve data centers in 2030.”
  2. Executive summary – Energy and AI
    International Energy Agency · 2025-04-10
    2 source excerpts
    “A typical AI-focused data centre consumes as much electricity as 100 000 households, but the largest ones under construction today will consume 20 times as much.”
    “In the United States, data centres account for nearly half of electricity demand growth between now and 2030.”
  3. 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report
    Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · 2024-12-20
    4 source excerpts
    “U.S. data center energy use has continued to grow at an increasing rate, reaching 176 TWh by 2023, representing 4.4% of total U.S. electricity consumption.”
    “By 2018 data centers consumed about 76 TWh, representing 1.9% of total annual U.S. electricity consumption.”
    “Together, the scenario variations provide a range of total data center energy estimates, with the low and high end of roughly 325 and 580 TWh in 2028 ... This annual energy use also represents 6.7% to 12.0% of total U.S. electricity consumption forecasted for 2028.”
    “Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) is defined as the total electricity demand of the data center divided by the electricity demand of the IT equipment.”
  4. DOE Releases New Report Evaluating Increase in Electricity Demand from Data Centers
    U.S. Department of Energy · 2024-12-20
    Source excerpt
    “The report indicates that total data center electricity usage climbed from 58 TWh in 2014 to 176 TWh in 2023 and estimates an increase between 325 to 580 TWh by 2028.”
  5. Energy demand from AI – Energy and AI
    International Energy Agency · 2025-04-10
    2 source excerpts
    “By contrast, the United States has the highest per-capita data centre consumption, at around 540 kWh in 2024.”
    “Consumption increases by around 240 TWh (up 130%) in the United States, compared to the 2024 level.”
  6. Powering Intelligence: Updated U.S. Data Center Scenarios
    Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) · 2026
    Source excerpt
    “EPRI projects data centers to consume 9% to 17% of U.S. electricity by 2030, up from 4% to 5% today, a 2-4x increase in annual electricity consumption.”
  7. Understanding the energy-AI nexus – Energy and AI
    International Energy Agency · 2025-04-10
    2 source excerpts
    “A conventional data centre may be around 10-25 megawatts (MW) in size.”
    “A hyperscale, AI-focused data centre can have a capacity of 100 MW or more, consuming as much electricity annually as 100 000 households.”
  8. Characteristics and Risks of Emerging Large Loads
    North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) · 2025-07
    Source excerpt
    “Traditional data centers have historically been characterized by their smaller size (under 30 MW in many cases) and limited variability.”
  9. 2025 Long-Term Reliability Assessment
    North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) · 2026-01
    Source excerpt
    “Over the 10-year period, aggregated assessment area summer peak demand is forecast to rise by over 224 GW. ... New data centers for artificial intelligence and the digital economy account for most of the projected increase in North American electricity demand over the next 10 years.”
  10. PJM's Updated 20-Year Forecast Continues To See Significant Long-Term Load Growth
    PJM Interconnection · 2026-01-14
    Source excerpt
    “The summer peak is forecasted to be approximately 222,000 MW in 2036, a 10-year increase of nearly 66,000 MW ... For perspective on how data centers have impacted the long-term outlook, the 10-year average annual growth rate estimated in the 2021 Long-Term Load Forecast was 0.3% per year”
  11. ERCOT Releases Preliminary Long-Term Load Forecast for Years 2026–2032 for PUCT Discussion
    Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) · 2026-04-15
    2 source excerpts
    “The current forecast projects approximately 367,790 MW of demand in the ERCOT Region by 2032. ... ERCOT's all-time peak demand is 85,508 MW, recorded on August 10, 2023.”
    “Large load customers reflect load types such as data centers, cryptocurrency mining, industrial, and oil and gas processes.”
  12. Dominion Energy data center load forecast documentation submitted to PJM (letter from Stan Blackwell, Director – Data Center Practice)
    Dominion Energy (posted by PJM Interconnection) · 2026-01-06
    2 source excerpts
    “the Company currently serves the largest data center market in the world with a 2025 coincident peak of 4 GW.”
    “as of July 2025, the capacity value of these contracts is 47 GW (9.8 ESA + 7.1 CLOA + 30.1 ELOA). The Company is forecasting 16.6 GW of demand by 2046, not the 47 GW of capacity. This difference highlights the difference between capacity and demand.”
  13. EIA forecasts strongest four-year growth in U.S. electricity demand since 2000, fueled by data centers
    U.S. Energy Information Administration · 2026-01-13
    Source excerpt
    “EIA expects U.S. electricity use to grow by 1% this year and 3% in 2027. ... The driving factor behind this surge is increasing demand from large computing centers.”
  14. Uptime Institute Global Data Center Survey 2025
    Uptime Institute · 2025-07
    2 source excerpts
    “In 2025, respondents' annual PUE had a weighted average of 1.54 (see Figure 2), marking the sixth consecutive year that this headline figure has virtually stood still.”
    “The industry's average dropped quickly — from 2.5 in 2007 to 1.65 in 2014 — as operators first deployed the most practical and economical changes.”
  15. Power usage effectiveness – Google Data Centers
    Google · 2026
    Source excerpt
    “In 2025, the average annual power usage effectiveness for our global fleet of data centers was 1.09.”

Each source was opened and checked against the excerpt shown. Company statements are identified as such. Figures are as published; where sources differ, each is shown.