Modular Data Center Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2025 - 2030)

Global Modular Data Center Market Trends and Insights

Rapid Edge-Computing Rollout

Edge deployments are growing much faster than centralised facilities as video analytics, autonomous systems, and industrial IoT call for sub-10 millisecond latency. The modular data center market benefits because micro facilities can be dropped into retail rooftops, factory floors, or base-station shelters without lengthy site work. With edge data centers forecast to expand at 37.9% CAGR, operators in telecom and transportation increasingly select all-in-one prefabricated enclosures that ship with power, cooling, and racks pre-tested. Delta’s SmartNode line shows how integrated battery strings and in-row chillers maintain uptime in harsh edge environments.^{[1]Delta Power Solutions, “SmartNode Prefabricated Datacenters,” deltapowersolutions.com} Service providers also value the ability to duplicate designs across hundreds of remote points, streamlining spares and training needs. For vendors, the distributed footprint expands addressable unit volumes even if individual footprints are smaller than core sites.

Hyperscale and Cloud Adoption Surge

Hyperscale operators add floor area equivalent to several football fields every month, and the modular data center market is becoming a preferred way to meet that pace. Modular blocks allow consistent quality control across continents and collapse deployment timelines from 18 months to less than 9 months. Cloud brands benefit from standardised power and network topologies that make capacity fungible across regions, easing disaster-recovery planning. ARANER projects the hyperscale data-center sector will balloon to USD 935.3 billion by 2032, sustaining demand for rapid-build capacity.^{[2]ARANER, “The Rise of the Hyperscale Data Center,” araner.com} Integrated automation—ranging from robotic cabling to AI-based airflow tuning—now ships with many modules, supporting remote “lights-out” operations. Collectively, these factors reinforce a flywheel effect: shorter build cycles free capital sooner, enabling more frequent expansions.

AI-Driven High-Density Liquid-Cool Modules

Generative AI training clusters pack thousands of GPUs that each dissipate more than 500 W, pushing racks beyond 100 kW. Conventional air systems struggle at those densities, so the modular data center market is quickly adopting liquid cooling as a standard option. Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s AI Mod POD handles 1.5 MW per module via Adaptive Cascade Cooling, allowing partial PUEs under 1.05 while fitting in a 45-foot container footprint.^{[3]Hewlett Packard Enterprise, “HPE Introduces New Enterprise AI Solutions with NVIDIA,” hpe.com}For customers, the appeal lies in predictable thermals and the ability to purchase fully validated racks rather than assemble bespoke solutions. Component vendors, meanwhile, see design-in opportunities for immersion-rated boards, cold plates, and dielectric fluids, expanding the overall ecosystem.

5G-Triggered Quick-Build Demand

5G macro cells create many more radio points than 4G, each requiring compute for user-plane functions and content caching. Telecom carriers therefore drive the modular data center market as they scatter small, rugged enclosures across metro zones. Cisco’s deployment with Dish Wireless uses an ACI Multi-Pod fabric to interconnect dozens of edge sites, showcasing how network-centric automation complements modular hardware. The ability to crane-lift a complete Tier III pod onto a parking-lot pad slashes permitting cycles. In dense cities, modular units also tuck into ground-floor retail or basements where traditional builds would be impossible, enabling operators to meet coverage obligations without costly land acquisitions.

High Upfront CAPEX and Vendor Lock-In

Factory-integrated power modules can cost USD 750,000–1 million per MW, a sizeable cheque for smaller enterprises. Financing complexities are compounded by proprietary interconnects that make it costly to mix brands later, raising fears of being tied to a single supplier. In emerging markets, limited access to low-cost capital accentuates the hurdle. While operating savings eventually offset the premium, CFOs often prioritise near-term cash flow over lifetime economics. Vendors that offer leasing, revenue-share, or “capacity as a service” arrangements can mitigate the perception of lock-in and help broaden adoption.

Power-Efficiency and Sustainability Gaps

Although partial PUEs below 1.05 are technically feasible, many modular deployments still run at higher values because speed-to-market trumps deep optimisation. The International Energy Agency warns that global data-center energy use could double by 2026, leading regulators to tighten reporting mandates. European sustainability directives already push operators to publish efficiency metrics, and similar frameworks are under discussion in North America. Liquid cooling adds complexity around water usage and heat reuse that some designs have yet to address. Companies such as HPE demonstrate circular approaches by feeding waste heat into district systems, but these best practices are far from universal. As policies stiffen, any perceived lag may shrink the addressable pool of customers that can pass environmental audits.

Segment Analysis

By Solution and Services: Service Segment Outpaces Hardware Growth

Functional modules dominated the modular data center market in 2024, underpinned by their 62.12% share of revenue. Standardised steel-frame blocks equipped with integrated UPS, chillers, and racks have become a de-risked path for expansion: operators know exactly what arrives at the dock and how it will perform. That predictability lowers project management overhead and speeds up grid-tie approvals. Yet, the services segment is on a steeper 19.45% CAGR because clients increasingly outsource everything from site surveys to day-two optimisation. As power densities rise, issues such as fluid chemistry management or AI workload tuning require niche skills that most IT teams do not maintain in-house. Consequently, service providers bundle design, build, and long-term operations into outcome-based contracts, turning what was once CapEx into ongoing OpEx.

In many bids, functional modules now integrate application-specific accelerators, software-defined fabrics, and AI-based telemetry out of the box. EPG’s latest generation incorporates modular switchgear, lithium-ion battery strings, and rear-door heat exchangers to support 100 kW racks without floor penetrations. Meanwhile, Delta Power Solutions couples its consulting arm with add-on microgrid controllers so that sites can tap rooftop solar or fuel cells. These extended offerings make the service line indispensable, and its share of the broader modular data center market will likely keep inching upward as complexity snowballs.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Application: AI/GPU Training Pods Driving Next-Generation Growth

Data center expansion projects captured 32.34% of 2024 revenue because organisations still rely on incremental annexes to meet steady demand. However, AI/GPU training pods are the clear momentum story, racing ahead at a 22.65% CAGR. These pods ship with immersion baths or direct-to-chip cold plates, high-bandwidth memory stacks, and optical interconnects, all engineered for multi-petaflop clusters. Server Simply’s blueprint shows GPU count scaling linearly with coolant loops, enabling deterministic performance for time-boxed model training. CIOs value the guarantee that power, cooling, and network coherence arrive ready-tuned from the factory.

Disaster-recovery pods also benefit from modularity. A fully populated container can sit in a separate seismic zone and spin up within minutes of a primary-site outage, vital for banks or hospitals subject to zero-tolerance downtime mandates. Because form factors are predictable, organisations run rehearsed swap-over drills, shaving recovery time objectives to single-digit minutes. As cyber-resilience climbs board agendas, this sub-segment quietly adds tailwind to the overall modular data center market.

By Build Type: Greenfield Projects Accelerate as Purpose-Built Facilities Gain Favor

Brownfield retrofits retained a 58% foothold in 2024 by exploiting existing utility feeds and fibre pathways. City-center warehouses converted into edge nodes illustrate the appeal: permit processes are shorter, and tenants can command premium latency pricing. Nonetheless, greenfield sites are clocking 22.78% CAGR because ground-up campuses allow megawatt-scale energy contracts, optimised airflow corridors, and onsite renewables. For hyperscalers, designing from scratch ensures power-to-rack ratios and liquid loop routing match GPU roadmaps out to 2030, avoiding the compromises inherent in legacy shells.

ZincFive’s analysis shows how nickel-zinc battery cabinets integrate more naturally into new builds where floor load limits and room heights can be set early. The upfront blueprint also allocates space for heat-recovery heat exchangers that feed district schemes—features harder to bolt onto ageing structures. Consequently, even colocation providers now set aside greenfield parcels near secondary metros where land is cheaper yet fibre is plentiful. The modular data center market thus balances short-term revenue from brownfield with a strategic pivot to purpose-built campuses.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

Geography Analysis

North America led the modular data center market in 2024 with a 43.44% revenue share thanks to a mature cloud ecosystem and capital depth. Large-scale projects in Northern Virginia, Dallas, and Phoenix accounted for a significant chunk of new capacity, and vacancy rates fell to record lows as AI tenants pre-leased entire phases even before construction completed. The region also benefits from robust secondary markets such as Portland and Columbus, where electricity costs remain comparatively low and state incentives sweeten capital-intensive greenfield deals. Cooling innovation clusters around Silicon Valley and Austin mean suppliers can prototype liquid solutions locally, shortening iteration cycles.

Asia-Pacific ranks as the fastest-growing theatre with a 21.23% CAGR through 2030, reflecting the surge in 5G rollouts, e-commerce penetration, and sovereign-cloud frameworks. China’s eastern seaboard is layering modular edge nodes along major highways to support autonomous trucking corridors, while India’s tier-2 cities adopt prefabricated shells to bypass grid-expansion delays. Government policies encouraging indigenous manufacturing amplify the move—prefab container assembly lines now operate in Shenzhen, Bangalore, and Jakarta, cutting logistics costs. For suppliers, navigating diverse regulatory regimes remains challenging, but volume potential outweighs localisation friction.

Europe sits mid-pack yet exhibits distinct drivers. GDPR compliance prompts enterprises to ring-fence data within national borders, so modular blocks pop up in smaller countries that previously relied on cross-border hosting. Sustainability imperatives loom large: Nordic operators highlight containerised data halls cooled with seawater or free air to secure green financing. Continental demand also ties to automotive electrification, with OEMs in Germany and France setting up AI training pods for autonomous-driving models inside modular units adjacent to proving grounds. As the fit-out phase accelerates, the modular data center market size for Europe could approach previously forecast USD 64.5 billion by 2029.

The Middle East and Africa represent nascent yet high-margin opportunities. Governments in the Gulf push vision-funded digital-economy plans that include megawatt-class greenfield campuses built on desert outskirts with solar hybrids. Because ambient temperatures exceed 45 °C, liquid cooling inside sealed containers mitigates dust ingress and reduces chill-water plant footprints. African nations, meanwhile, leverage modular kits for regional internet exchanges, addressing latency and data sovereignty in one stroke. Suppliers willing to offer build-operate-transfer models stand to gain early-mover advantage as these regions leapfrog traditional brick-and-mortar designs.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase