Mumbai, Hyderabad climb in global data centre ranks
Fri, 7th Aug 2026 (Today)
Mumbai ranks 15th globally for operational data centre capacity in Knight Frank's Global Data Centre Atlas 2026. Hyderabad also featured strongly, ranking 19th for development pipeline.
The report places Mumbai 11th worldwide by pipeline capacity and identifies Hyderabad as one of the sector's faster-growing markets.
Knight Frank compared 36 data centre markets across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, using live IT capacity and pipeline IT capacity as its main measures.
Mumbai recorded 774 MW of live IT capacity, putting it alongside more established global hubs in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. Its development pipeline stood at 4,993 MW, placing it just outside the global top 10 for projects under construction, committed or in early development.
Hyderabad, by contrast, has a smaller operational base at 151 MW, ranking 27th globally for live capacity. But its pipeline of 2,265 MW lifted it to 19th place, suggesting a faster build-out than its current installed base would imply.
The operational rankings remain dominated by US markets, with Ashburn in first place at 5,636 MW, followed by Columbus, Dallas, Phoenix and Atlanta. In Europe and Asia-Pacific, Tokyo, London, Dublin, Singapore and Johor were among the larger established centres.
For pipeline capacity, Atlanta led with 27,028 MW, ahead of Ashburn, Chicago and Dallas. Johor ranked fifth globally, while London was 10th with 5,694 MW, narrowly ahead of Mumbai.
Indian hubs
The study points to broader activity across India beyond the two leading markets. Chennai was identified as a gateway for Southeast Asian internet traffic, while Bengaluru continues to draw demand from Global Capability Centres, research and development operations, and colocation users.
Pune and the National Capital Region are also expanding, supported by demand for lower-cost alternatives and uptake from banking, financial services and public cloud customers. Tier-II locations, including Visakhapatnam and Jamnagar, were cited as emerging greenfield markets with large-scale development proposals linked to government backing and planned subsea cable connectivity.
Mumbai's role in the national market rests partly on its position as a major international connectivity gateway through multiple subsea cable landings. The city also benefits from its proximity to India's financial services sector and a large enterprise customer base.
Hyderabad has attracted hyperscale cloud operators because of the availability of larger development sites, policy support, a growing technology ecosystem and relatively competitive operating costs.
Growth constraints
Despite the rise in global rankings, India remains at an earlier stage of development than the largest data centre markets, the report said. It added that the next phase of expansion will depend on power availability, transmission infrastructure, faster approvals, fibre connectivity, sustainable energy supply and larger campus-style developments suited to AI workloads.
Shishir Baijal, International Partner, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India, made that case in the report's commentary.
"India's presence in the global rankings demonstrates how rapidly the country has evolved into a strategic digital infrastructure destination. Mumbai's position among the world's leading operational markets reflects years of investment in connectivity, enterprise demand and cloud infrastructure, while Hyderabad's strong pipeline highlights the confidence global operators have in India's long-term growth story. However, if India is to move into the league of the world's top ten data centre markets, the focus must now shift from demand creation to enabling infrastructure. Faster power provisioning, expansion of renewable energy capacity, accelerated transmission upgrades, streamlined approvals and the availability of large development-ready sites will be critical to supporting the next generation of AI-led and hyperscale investments. India enjoys several enduring advantages. Its gateway markets offer proximity to one of the world's fastest-growing digital economies, a vast domestic consumption base, improving international connectivity through subsea cable networks, competitive operating costs and strong government support for digital infrastructure. As these strengths are complemented by continued investment in power and infrastructure, India is well positioned to become one of the world's most important data centre destinations over the coming decade," Baijal said.
The report also pointed to sustained cloud adoption, greater enterprise digitalisation and rising AI-related computing demand as the main drivers of growth.
Joseph Thilak, Executive Director- Occupier Strategy & Solutions, Head of Data Centre Business (India), Knight Frank India, said: "India's data centre market is entering a more mature phase, supported by sustained cloud adoption, AI-led computing demand and the rapid digitalisation of enterprises. Occupiers today are prioritising scalable, resilient and energy-efficient infrastructure, prompting operators to expand capacity in established markets while evaluating emerging locations. As digital infrastructure becomes increasingly integral to business operations, India's favourable demand fundamentals, improving connectivity and supportive policy environment are expected to strengthen its position as a long-term data centre hub in Asia."