Data Centers in Iowa

Iowa – Resilient Infrastructure & Renewable Power

Iowa is a strategic market for companies requiring highly resilient, cost-effective data center capacity with a strong renewable energy profile. Its central location, low disaster risk, and significant tax incentives make it ideal for disaster recovery sites, backend processing, and serving Midwest markets without the high costs of primary coastal hubs.

Iowa: At A Glance

Network & Connectivity Ecosystem

Iowa's connectivity is reliable and focused on serving regional needs, with access to national networks through major nearby hubs. The state hosts 24 data centers supported by over 10 providers, as of September 2025.

Carrier Density & Carrier Neutrality With over 10 unique network providers, Iowa offers sufficient carrier diversity for most enterprise and disaster recovery needs. Carrier-neutral facilities in metros like Des Moines provide access to multiple local, regional, and national networks for creating redundant connectivity strategies.

Direct Cloud On-Ramps There are no public cloud on-ramps located directly within Iowa, as of September 2025. Businesses connect to cloud providers like AWS, Google Cloud (GCP), and Microsoft Azure through private network extensions or dedicated circuits to major interconnection hubs in Chicago, Kansas City, or Minneapolis.

Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) Public peering is limited within Iowa. Most traffic exchange occurs through private peering arrangements within local data centers or is routed to major IXPs in Chicago, such as the Equinix Internet Exchange.

Bare Metal Bare metal server capacity is available in Iowa, primarily through colocation providers offering dedicated hardware solutions. Providers like ColoCrossing offer bare metal options suitable for workloads requiring direct hardware access.

Power Analysis

Iowa stands out for its favorable power environment, combining low costs with a grid dominated by renewable energy.

Average Cost Of Power Industrial electricity rates are estimated between $0.07 and $0.09/kWh, as of September 2025. This competitive pricing is a direct result of the state's massive wind energy infrastructure, making it a compelling location for reducing operational expenditures.

Power Grid Reliability The power grid is well-engineered and reliable, particularly in the areas developed for data center and industrial use. The state's energy mix is approximately 60% renewable, primarily from wind, with the remainder from fossil fuels. This diverse generation portfolio contributes to stable and resilient power delivery.

Market Access, Business & Tax Climate

Iowa offers a pro-business environment with direct financial advantages for data center operators and their customers.

Proximity To Key Business Districts Data centers are strategically located near key business centers like Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and Council Bluffs (part of the Omaha metro). This proximity supports financial services, insurance, biosciences, and advanced manufacturing industries active in the region.

Regional Market Reach From a central position in the Upper Midwest, Iowa provides low-latency network access to over 80 million people. It is an effective location for serving end-users and business operations in Chicago, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Omaha.

Tax Advantage For Data Centers Iowa provides a targeted sales and use tax exemption on equipment, software, and energy for large-scale data center projects. This significantly reduces both the initial capital investment and ongoing operational costs for qualifying facilities.

Natural Disaster Risk

Iowa has a moderate natural disaster risk profile, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 43.14 out of 100, as of September 2025. The state is not exposed to major seismic, hurricane, or wildfire risks that affect other primary data center markets.

Key risks are primarily weather-related and include:

• Tornado
• Strong Wind
• Hail
• Riverine Flooding
• Winter Weather
• Drought