
How much does it cost to run a data center?
The cost of commercial office space in the U.S. can range from $6 per square foot in low cost regions to over $12 per square foot in New York City. On average, a 50-cabinet data center will occupy about 1,700 square feet. At a median cost of $8 per square foot, the space alone would cost about $13,600 per month.
How much does data center colocation hosting cost?
Data centers usually charge a monthly fee for their colocation hosting that includes a set amount of bandwidth and IP addresses. Average monthly fees can range anywhere from $45 to $300 per U per month.
How much does a 50-cabinet data center cost?
On average, a 50-cabinet data center will occupy about 1,700 square feet. At a median cost of $8 per square foot, the space alone would cost about $13,600 per month.
Is a private data center the best option for your business?
Cost tends to be one of the key deciding factors when businesses come to choose between a bespoke build or a colocation data center. But while a handful of companies do have the space and resources to build a private data center, this isn’t always the best option.

How much does a data center cost?
The average yearly cost to operate a large data center ranges from $10 million to $25 million. A little less than half is spent on hardware, software, disaster recovery, continuous power supplies and networking. Another large portion goes toward ongoing maintenance of applications and infrastructure.
How much does IT cost to rent rack space in data center?
Generally, rack space works out to be about $1000 to $1500 per month per rack.
How much do data center servers cost?
Costs may be as high as $100,000 per megawatt. It depends. Remember to add in backup power facilities as well (industrial-strength battery backup and diesel generator, for instance.) Network connectivity.
Is owning a data center profitable?
Data centers are expensive, resource intensive, and rarely profitable.
How much does IT cost to run a small data center?
The short answer to your question is that it costs about $1000 a square foot to build your own data center. That's not taking into account that it can often cost in excess of $10,000 per mile that it takes to have fiber installed to reach your location.
Are data centers expensive?
As a general rule, it costs between $600 to $1,100 per gross square foot or $7 million to $12 million per megawatt of commissioned IT load to build a data center.
How do data centers make money?
Data center operators make money by leasing or licensing power and space. Who are the big players? “Total revenue in the global colocation market in the first quarter was $9.5 billion, with revenue from large cloud providers growing 22% from the year- earlier period.”
How do I start my own datacenter?
Here are eight fundamental steps to creating a more efficient, manageable and scalable datacenter that evolves with your organization's needs:Be Modular. ... Converge When Possible. ... Let Software Drive. ... Embrace Commodity Hardware. ... Empower End Users. ... Break Down Silos. ... Go Hybrid. ... Focus on Service Continuity.
What is the biggest cost in data center?
Data Centers -- What are the Costs of Ownership?Electricity: 20 percent.Engineering and Installation Manpower: 18 percent.Power and Server Equipment: 18 percent.Facility Space: 15 percent.Service and Maintenance: 15 percent.HVAC Equipment: 6 percent.Project Management: 5 percent.Rack Hardware: 2 percent.More items...•
How much money does data centers make?
While being built, a typical data center employs 1,688 local workers, provides $77.7 million in wages for those workers, produces $243.5 million in output along the local economy's supply chain, and generates $9.9 million in revenue for state and local governments.
How much does IT cost to build a Tier 3 data center?
DATA CENTER: TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIPBUILD YOUR OWNTier III COLOCATION SPACEConstruction Cost$535,000.00$ -Floor Space$15,000.00$153,000.00Electricity$51,321.60$107,775.36Electrical Maintenance$28,361.15$ -4 more rows
How do I invest in a data center?
How to Invest in Data Center REITs. There are numerous data center REITs listed on the FTSE Nareit US Real Estate Indexes. Many investors acquire shares in these REITs via REIT mutual funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs), but individuals can also invest directly in an office REIT with the help of a broker.
How much does IT cost to power a data center?
Although technological advancements in intelligent rack PDUs and compute devices often provide greater efficiency, the energy cost to power a single server rack in a data center in the US can be as high as almost $30,000 a year depending on its configuration.
How much does IT cost to build a new data center?
The average enterprise data center costs between $10 million and $12 million per megawatt to build, with costs typically front-loaded onto the first few megawatts of deployment. What's more, the typical edge data center costs between $8 million and $9 million.
What does a server cost?
The cost of servers can range from as low as $5,000 to over $20,000. It all depends on your needs. A server needs constant maintenance and should be replaced after five years.
What is data center space?
A data center is a facility that centralizes an organization's shared IT operations and equipment for the purposes of storing, processing, and disseminating data and applications. Because they house an organization's most critical and proprietary assets, data centers are vital to the continuity of daily operations.
How does a data center use power?
Power: All data centers consume power for two purposes: first to power the servers and other IT equipment and , second, to power the air conditioning to cool the equipment (which is considerable) and the general environment. Enterprises can determine IT power requirements by summing up the consumption of the equipment. This can be found in equipment specifications and is generally a range depending on processing loads. If total consumption is more than 300kW, then enterprise customers may consider buying actual power consumption (metered, like at your home). Otherwise, they will pay a fixed fee for the power available to the equipment.
What are the challenges of migrating data centers?
One of the many challenges they face is navigating disparate and confusing pricing models. Some providers only charge for power and network while others charge for power, space and network. Some charge different rates for cooling power versus cabinet power and all charge for cross-connects.
Do data center providers have to respond to a specific format?
All data center providers have the ability to respond to a specific format in the customer's preference. Even if the final agreement is written using a different pricing model, asking for pricing in a standard apples-to-apples format allows for easier evaluation of options.
Why do companies need a colocation data center?
Opting for a data center allows companies to access a flexible, fully scalable resource that can grow with the business. If a company chooses to build its own data center, then the costs involved in making that scalable will inevitably be far higher.
How much does it cost to calibrate a colocation network?
In general, the lowest you can get in the door with redundant power and network is around $600/mo out the door at any colocation worth their salt. The prices go up from there depending on how much capacity you need.
How much does it cost to get 100 Mbps?
Trying to get a 100 Mbps circuit from a primary provider can often cost $500-900/mo, which is often price prohibitive. We have several MSP’s in our ecosystem such as Netdepot that provide BGP optimized blends that start as low as $250/mo for network and can scale you into Gig speeds for costs as low as $850/mo. This is with multiple carriers so you get inherent redundancy and great local support.
Why have customers failed to get off site data center?
In all truth, there are many customers who have failed at getting their initiative for an off-site data center approved because of poor initial scoping and pricing. This is a solvable problem. Having done hundreds of data center tours and sales processes, I have seen the full gamut of requirements and mistakes. There are some rules to remember and some ideas to help you with the start of your search.
How to count how loaded a cabinet is?
When counting how “loaded” your cabinet is look at your current racks. Do a mental check of what is coming and whats not – be sure to note if there are high density loads such as blade chassis in your cabinet. If you have high density loads such as blade chassis and other devices of that nature, you will most likely be considered a “Heavily Loaded Cabinet” for purposes of this exercise, at least a “Moderately Loaded Cabinet”.
How much does it cost to get a colocation?
You can get fully equipped for as little as about $600 dollars per month to get started in a colocation. The price goes up from there, so it is important to follow these steps to make sure that you understand what you are purchasing and how much you need to purchase. Not all organizations are helpful with this process but we’re here to help with a free audit! Contact us for more about this!
Can you add another cabinet to a colocation data center?
The good news is, if you get it wrong, in a colocation data center that doesn’t charge for cross connects you can always add another cabinet and interconnect them!
How big is a data center cabinet?
The most common cabinet size is 42U, but data centers may have cabinets as small as 16U or as large as 58U. The depth of the rack can vary greatly; 1 meter (39.37 inches) is common, but the depth may be as little as 600 mm.
How is rack space measured?
Physical space. Each piece of equipment occupies some amount of rack space. A device is measured by its "U" height. A 1U device fits in 1.75 inches (44.45 mm) of rack height; so a 2U device fits in 3.5 inches, and a 3U device in 5.25 inches. The standard width for a rack is 19 inches, or 482.6 mm. Infrastructure costs, such as air conditioning, get figured into the cost of physical space.
What is the charge for incoming and outgoing data?
The charge for incoming and outgoing data is generally called a "bandwidth charge ," though that's a confusing term. You aren't charged for data capacity but for the amount of data transfer you select.
What is a per whip?
Flat rate. This is also called "per whip." The customer pays a fixed price for a power connection, based on expected kilowatt usage. This is simple and predictable, but it's important to choose the right power rating. With too little, the equipment won't run reliably. With too much, you're paying for power you aren't using. Keep in mind that by standard practice, a device's continuous power draw is no more than 80% of its maximum rating.
What is set up charge?
Labor and technical support. Set-up charges cover the installation and connection of equipment, and later changes to the layout may have associated costs.
What do you pay for in a data center?
What you pay the data center is separate from the equipment you house there. You buy or lease rack-mount servers, drives, routers, and other devices and bring them to the data center .
Why do data centers need backup power?
Devices need power to run, and data centers provide backup power to make sure that electrical disruptions don't bring all the equipment down. Data connectivity. A data center has multiple Internet connections for redundancy and bandwidth. They're distributed among the customers' equipment.
Calculate Generator Requirements
You can’t serve your members if you don’t have power. It’s as simple as that.
Power
Total fixed data center costs before maintenance before maintenance is between $4,046 - $6,100 per month. This does not include soft labor or maintenance pricing.
We also support your IT team with relevant resources, trusted advice, and best practices to ensure that your implementation is right the first time
Learn more about what we can do for you with one of our free eBooks, or schedule a personal consultation with one of our experts.
How much does it cost to run a data center?
The average yearly cost to operate a large data center ranges from $10 million to $25 million. A little less than half is spent on hardware, software, disaster recovery, continuous power supplies and networking. Another large portion goes toward ongoing maintenance of applications and infrastructure. The rest is spent on heating, air conditioning, property and sales tax, and labor costs.
What is data center cost?
Data Center Cost refers to the cost of ownership in running a private data center or colocation facility — including the property, building, servers, networking equipment, power, cooling and other infrastructure needs.
How much does a data center cost per month?
Average monthly fees can range anywhere from $45 to $300 per U per month. The following are average price ranges for some of the top data center cities in the United States. These ranges are per U per month. Boston: $50 to $200 per U per month.
Why are data centers less expensive than downtown?
This is because rental and real estate prices are higher in city centers than they are outside of the city. The data centers in large cities have to charge more to make up for their higher costs.
How does colocation pricing work?
Colocation pricing is largely determined by the amount of space your equipment takes up. In order to understand how colocation pricing works, it is helpful to learn some of the terms used when figuring out the cost and what those terms refer to.
Why is colocation hosting so popular?
Colocation hosting is quickly becoming more common as businesses find themselves dependent on their IT equipment and the necessity of having their data secure and available at all times. Many companies don’t want the hassle of constantly maintaining and monitoring their equipment, and others don’t have the infrastructure or expertise to do it themselves.
What is rack space?
Rack space refers to the physical amount of space that your server (s) will take up on a rack.
How big is a rack cage?
In data centres, a typical full-sized rack cage is 42U high and either 19 or 23 inches wide. The individual pieces of equipment held on these racks are usually anywhere from 1U to 4U high. Most rack-mount servers take up 1-2 Us of space.
What is the unit of measurement for rack space?
The unit of measurement used when talking about rack space is “U,” which is equal to 1.75 inches in height. For example, a piece of equipment that is 3.5 inches high would take up 2U of rack space.
