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Georgia has become a significant destination for colocation services in the Southeastern United States. With over 140 data center facilities, the state offers a combination of strategic location, robust connectivity, and supportive economic policies

Georgia’s Strategic Connectivity

Georgia’s location in the southeastern United States supports low-latency connections to major markets such as Miami, Dallas, and Washington, D.C., with Atlanta serving as a central interconnection point strengthened by dense fiber-optic infrastructure and a wide range of network providers.

The city’s position as a digital hub has grown even stronger with Elon Musk’s xAI building a new data center in Atlanta in partnership with X (formerly Twitter), featuring about 12,448 Nvidia GPUs and $700 million in equipment through a municipal-bond financing deal with Develop Fulton.

The 56 Marietta Carrier Hotel in downtown Atlanta offers access to numerous carriers and cloud providers, increasing redundancy and improving network performance for businesses through its carrier-neutral facility that serves as a primary interconnection point for long-haul fiber-optic networks and provides direct connections to over 130 network providers.

Located at 56 Marietta Street NW, Equinix’s AT3 data center delivers secure, scalable colocation and interconnection services, allowing businesses to connect directly to customers and partners across their digital supply chain.

With these facilities, Atlanta’s data centers provide low-latency network routes to important markets, offering businesses fast and reliable data transmission for operational success.

Economic and Tax Incentives

Georgia offers sales and use tax exemptions for high-tech data centers that meet certain investment and job creation requirements. Specifically, these exemptions cover qualifying equipment and are available through December 31, 2031.

To qualify, data centers must meet investment and hiring thresholds based on county population. For instance, in counties with over 50,000 people, the requirement is $250 million and 25 new jobs. In counties with 30,000 to 50,000 people, it’s $150 million and 10 jobs. Meanwhile, for counties under 30,000, it’s $100 million and 5 jobs.

These incentives have led major tech companies like Microsoft, Google, and Meta to expand in Georgia. The state’s well developed energy infrastructure and low costs make it easier to operate large data centers. Douglas County’s data centers, including Google’s first Georgia facility, now support critical services and bring in data center employees from the region.

Douglas County powers services used across the southeastern United States. Companies that chose Douglas County often point to access to land, utilities, and skilled workers. Projects like the Georgia data center campus continue to grow, adding to the area’s data center presence.

Some lawmakers raised concerns about the strain on the state’s power grid. In 2024, the legislature passed a two-year pause on new tax exemptions, but Governor Brian Kemp vetoed it, warning it would hurt investment.

The policy still stands. Georgia supports business growth and encourages economic activity through tools like tax exemptions. The state also backs Georgia businesses and local communities. Data centers here use recycled industrial water and often employ local people.

Strong Energy Infrastructure for Data Centers

Georgia’s energy infrastructure supports the rapid expansion of data center operations. The state’s primary utility, Georgia Power, offers access to a mix of natural gas, nuclear, coal, and renewable energy.

QTS Realty Trust signed a 20-year agreement with Georgia Power to procure nearly 350 megawatts of renewable energy. Once active in 2024, this deal will supply about 90 percent of the electricity used at QTS’s Atlanta-Metro and Suwanee data center campuses from renewable sources.

Looking ahead, Georgia Power’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan includes adding at least 1,100 megawatts of new renewable energy capacity soon and expanding total renewable resources to about 11,000 megawatts by 2035. Planned projects include new utility-scale solar, rooftop solar programs, battery storage installations, and hydroelectric upgrades.

As a result of surging demand from sectors like data centers, expected to add 8,200 megawatts of new load over six years, Georgia Power has delayed previously scheduled coal plant retirements. Consequently, facilities such as Plant Bowen and Plant Scherer will continue operating into the 2030s to help maintain grid reliability.

Strong transmission infrastructure, utility partnerships offering renewable energy options, and steady investment in energy projects make Georgia a key hub for data center growth.

Leading Colocation Providers in Georgia

Let’s check out some of the leading colocation providers in Georgia: 

1. QTS Data Centers

QTS operates major data center campuses in Atlanta, Suwanee, and Fayetteville, Georgia. These campuses focus on energy efficiency, operational resilience, and environmental responsibility.

A. Atlanta 1 Campus

The Atlanta 1 Campus sits on a 99-acre site and provides over 278 MW of critical capacity. The campus features three dedicated, on-site, expandable Georgia Power substations. Infrastructure includes a redundant fiber conduit system for express fiber connections between current and future buildings, and electric vehicle (EV) charging stations available on-site.

The campus includes four primary data centers:

• DC1 at 1033 Jefferson St NW
• DC2 at 1025 Jefferson St NW
• DC3 at 953 Herndon St NW
• DC4 at 1103 Herndon St NW

B. Suwanee 1 Campus

Located on a 53-acre site in Atlanta’s northern suburbs, the Suwanee campus currently supports over 50 MW of critical capacity, with a dedicated on-site substation. A redundant fiber conduit system is in progress to enable high-speed fiber connectivity across future expansions.

Suwanee also offers secure parking, a break room with a fresh market café, conference rooms, a Wellness Room, and EV charging spots. It serves as home to the QTS Operations Support Center.

The campus includes two buildings:

• DC1 at 300 Satellite Blvd NW
• DC2 at 120 Satellite Blvd NW

C. Fayetteville Campus (“Project Excalibur”)

QTS is developing a 615-acre campus in Fayetteville, Georgia. Plans call for up to 16 data center buildings totaling 6.6 million square feet, along with 400,000 square feet of office space. Additionally, general contractors ClayCo Inc. and HITT Contracting Inc. are leading construction under full compliance with state, local, and federal regulations.

The Fayetteville campus prioritizes sustainability, featuring water-free cooling systems and green building practices aimed at achieving ENERGY STAR certification. The site aspires to operate on 100% carbon-free electricity once completed. QTS maintains open communication with local residents through regular construction updates and partnerships with community organizations.

Recently, QTS signed a 20-year agreement with Georgia Power to purchase nearly 350 megawatts of renewable energy, aiming to power 90% of the Atlanta-Metro and Suwanee campuses with renewables. QTS has maintained a strong presence in Georgia since 2005 with additional offices in Duluth, and consistently supports local communities through charitable initiatives and partnerships with organizations such as World Vision, American Forests, and the U.S. Dream Academy.

2. Switch – The Keep Campus (Atlanta)

The Keep Campus is Switch’s fourth PRIME data center location in the U.S., following its facilities in Las Vegas, Tahoe Reno, and Grand Rapids. It is located in Atlanta to serve the Southeastern region, with access to markets like Miami and Northern Virginia through low-latency connections.

The site will include over 1 million square feet of data center space and is expected to support up to 150 megawatts of power. The facility follows Tier 5® Platinum standards and offers configurations that support up to 55kW per cabinet.

Switch partnered with Georgia Power to use 100% renewable energy from local sources. The location also benefits from a 0% sales and use tax, made possible by Georgia’s House Bill 696, known as the “Switch Bill.”

Security is handled by on-site staff trained in military protocols. The campus is in a low-risk area for natural disasters. It connects to over 50 carriers through the Switch CORE Cooperative, which helps customers reduce telecom costs by up to 60%.

Construction is underway on more buildings at the site. The second building will add 50 megawatts, and a third will bring another 35 megawatts of capacity.

More details: switch.com/keep

3. DataBank – Atlanta Data Centers

DataBank operates six data centers across Georgia, with a strong presence in Atlanta and Lithia Springs. These facilities deliver colocation, connectivity, and cloud services for enterprise, hyperscale, and AI-driven workloads. Additionally, DataBank’s sites support customers needing high security, compliance, and scalability.

The Atlanta metro area locations include ATL1, ATL2, and ATL3. Meanwhile, the Lithia Springs campus includes ATL4, with future expansions underway for ATL5 and ATL6. Together, these centers offer over 750,000 square feet of raised floor space and more than 175 megawatts of critical IT load capacity.

Here are the details of each of their data centers in Georgia:

ATL1 – Midtown Atlanta

Located at 760 W Peachtree St NW, ATL1 sits within Georgia Tech’s Technology Square. It offers 38,260 square feet of raised floor space, 5.4MW of critical IT load, and dual Meet-Me-Rooms. It houses Georgia Tech’s High-Performance Computing Center and has access to dense fiber connectivity.

ATL2 – West End Atlanta

At 1100 White Street SW, ATL2 provides 52,610 square feet of raised floor space with 4MW of IT load. The facility includes multiple fiber paths and generator redundancy designs of N+1/2N for reliable uptime.

ATL3 – West End Atlanta

Found at 1150 White Street SW, ATL3 supports 6MW of IT load within 47,490 square feet of raised floor space. It offers carrier-neutral access to more than 10 providers and holds certifications across FISMA, HIPAA, HITECH, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, Privacy Shield, SOC 1, SOC 2, and SSAE 18.

ATL4 – Lithia Springs

ATL4, located at 200 Selig Drive SW, delivers 212,710 square feet of raised floor space and 40MW of power capacity. It supports businesses needing large-scale deployments.

ATL5 & ATL6 – Lithia Springs (Future Buildout)

DataBank secured 95 acres for the construction of ATL5 and ATL6. These new sites will offer 400,200 square feet of space and up to 120MW of critical IT load to meet the growing needs for AI, enterprise, and hyperscale deployments.

More details: databank.com/data-centers/atlanta

4. 365 Data Centers – Alpharetta and Smyrna

365 Data Centers operates two facilities in Georgia: one in Alpharetta and another in Smyrna.​

A. Alpharetta Facility (GA1)

 Located at 11650 Great Oaks Way, this 78,000 sq. ft. data center offers colocation, managed hosting, and network connectivity services. It features diverse fiber points of entry, access to numerous network carriers, and 24/7 on-site support. The facility includes a FM200 fire suppression system, Very Early Smoke Detection Apparatus, and four layers of security, including keycard and biometric access. The area has a low risk profile for natural disasters, making it suitable for disaster recovery and business continuity.

B. Smyrna Facility (GA2)

Situated at 5600 United Dr. SE, this 77,300 sq. ft. data center provides 4MW of power, dual utility feeds from separate substations, and a 1,020-ton cooling plant with N+1 redundancy. Additionally, it offers 24/7 security, multiple internal and external cameras, and remote hands services. The facility is designed for disaster recovery, business continuity, and low-latency applications.

5. Volico Data Centers – ATL1 at 56 Marietta Street, Atlanta

Volico’s ATL1 facility is located at 56 Marietta Street NW in downtown Atlanta, a major telecom hub. The data center offers colocation and interconnection services with access to over 16 carriers. It is audit-ready for SOX, HIPAA, and PCI compliance, and holds certifications including SSAE 16 (SOC 1) Type II, SOC 2, SOC 3, and PCI DSS. The facility provides 24/7 security with biometric and keycard access, CCTV surveillance, and offers flexible colocation options. 

Final Thoughts 

Georgia’s combination of strategic location, robust connectivity, favorable tax policies, and energy-efficient climate positions it as an attractive destination for colocation services. Consequently, businesses seeking scalable and sustainable infrastructure solutions can find a range of options among the state’s leading data center providers.