Data Centers in Helena

Helena – Low-Cost, Tax-Free Digital Infrastructure

Helena offers a compelling economic advantage for workloads that are not latency-sensitive to major coastal hubs. This market is built for businesses prioritizing low operational costs, capitalizing on some of the nation's cheapest power and a complete absence of sales tax. This financial efficiency makes it a strong contender for backup, disaster recovery, and large-scale data processing operations.

Helena: At A Glance

Network & Connectivity Ecosystem

Helena is an emerging market focused on regional connectivity rather than dense, global interconnection. The environment is suitable for targeted workloads serving Montana and the Northern Rockies.

Carrier Density & Carrier Neutrality The market includes over 3 carriers as of September 2025. While modest, this provides foundational diversity for local and regional network services in a carrier-neutral facility.

Direct Cloud On-Ramps There are no direct cloud on-ramps in Helena, with 0 cloud regions accessible locally as of September 2025. Secure, private connections to major cloud providers are established via network extensions to primary hubs like Denver or Salt Lake City.

Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) Public peering is not established in Helena. Most traffic exchange occurs through private peering arrangements or is routed through major exchange points in Denver.

Bare Metal Bare metal server options are available, providing dedicated compute resources for performance-intensive applications. Providers like ColoCrossing can serve the region, offering a cost-effective alternative to virtualized infrastructure.

Power Analysis

Montana's power profile is a key advantage for data center operators, defined by extremely low costs and a growing share of renewables.

Average Cost Of Power Industrial power rates in Helena range from $0.05 to $0.07 per kWh as of September 2025. This low cost creates substantial operational savings for high-density compute and storage environments. The grid mix consists of 57% low-carbon and renewable sources.

Power Grid Reliability The regional power grid is reliable for commercial and industrial use. Data centers in the area are engineered with multi-layered redundancy, including UPS systems and generator backup, to ensure continuous uptime.

Market Access, Business & Tax Climate

Helena's business environment is defined by its role as the state capital and its exceptional tax advantages.

Proximity To Key Business Districts As the capital of Montana, data centers in Helena are well-positioned to serve state government agencies and associated contractors. The market also supports local financial services, healthcare, and regional enterprise customers.

Regional Market Reach Helena provides effective, low-latency coverage for the entire state of Montana and can serve as a logical infrastructure hub for parts of Idaho, Wyoming, and the Dakotas.

Tax Advantage For Data Centers Montana has no state sales tax, which eliminates a major capital expense when purchasing servers, networking gear, and software licenses. The state also authorizes local governments to grant significant property tax abatements to attract new data center investment.

Natural Disaster Risk

Helena has a moderate natural disaster risk profile, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 59.11 as of September 2025. The area is not exposed to hurricanes or significant coastal threats.

Key risks are primarily environmental and geological. The most prominent hazards for the region include:

• Winter Weather
• Wildfire
• Drought
• Earthquake
• Tornado
• Riverine Flooding