Data Centers in Seattle

Seattle – Gateway to Pacific Rim Connectivity

Executive Summary

Seattle is a vital interconnection hub for enterprises targeting the Pacific Rim and the tech-heavy Pacific Northwest. High-density carrier ecosystems and sustainable energy profiles make it a primary choice for revenue-critical edge workloads and cloud-native scaling. Selecting this location ensures immediate proximity to global tech leaders and high-performance subsea transit.

Seattle: At A Glance

Network & Connectivity Ecosystem

Seattle is a mature interconnection point with a resilient fiber footprint. The ecosystem supports high-capacity transit and peering essential for managing massive data flows across the West Coast.

Carrier Density & Carrier Neutrality: There are over 60 providers as of December 2025. This density ensures competitive pricing and diverse routing options for enterprise traffic, with carrier-neutral facilities allowing for flexible provider selection.

Direct Cloud On-Ramps: Over 4, enabling access to 12 cloud regions as of December 2025. Users benefit from low-latency, private connections to AWS, Microsoft Azure, and IBM Cloud.

Internet Exchange Points (IXPs): The Seattle Internet Exchange (SIX) is one of the most active community-based exchanges globally, facilitating efficient local peering and reducing transit costs.

Bare Metal: High-performance compute resources are readily available through providers such as Hivelocity and ColoCrossing as of December 2025.

Power Analysis

Energy in the Pacific Northwest is defined by sustainability and cost-efficiency, providing a competitive edge for power-intensive deployments.

Average Cost Of Power: Industrial electricity is priced at $0.048/kWh as of December 2025. This rate is significantly lower than many other major US tech hubs, directly improving the bottom line for colocation tenants. The generation mix is approximately 67% Hydro, 11% Nuclear, and 12% Natural gas as of December 2025.

Power Grid Reliability: The local grid is resilient and well-engineered, drawing from a diverse set of renewable and traditional sources. Redundant paths and multi-substation support in major data center corridors ensure consistent uptime for mission-critical operations.

Market Access, Business & Tax Climate

Seattle is more than just a transit point; it is a global tech capital with a business environment built for scale.

Proximity To Key Business Districts: Data centers are located near major corporate headquarters including Amazon and Microsoft. This proximity reduces latency for hybrid cloud architectures and provides direct access to a deep pool of technical expertise.

Regional Market Reach: From this location, businesses can effectively serve the entire Pacific Northwest and Western Canada while maintaining a high-speed jumping-off point for Asian-Pacific markets.

Tax Advantage For Data Centers: Qualifying data centers and their tenants benefit from a specific sales and use tax exemption on server equipment and power infrastructure. This incentive significantly lowers the total cost of ownership for large-scale deployments.

Natural Disaster Risk

Seattle has a High risk profile with a FEMA NRI score of 93.22 as of December 2025. Infrastructure here is built to modern seismic standards to mitigate regional hazards.

Risk Rubric: High (93.22/100) as of December 2025.

The primary natural hazards for the region include:

• Earthquake: A significant regional concern requiring specialized structural engineering.
• Volcanic Activity: Regional risk from the Cascade Range, primarily affecting air quality and ash fall.
• Wildfire: Indirect seasonal risk resulting in smoke and specialized air filtration requirements.
• Landslide: Specific to sloped terrain during periods of heavy precipitation.
• Winter Weather: Occasional ice and snow events can impact local logistics.