PwC’s employment estimates for the data center industry include both full-time and part-time workers as well as self-employed business owners. The State Annual Personal Income and Employment data set published by the BEA is the only government source on historical total employment including self-employed individuals by industry. These data are only available through 2022, as the BEA has discontinued this data series for years after 2022. Based on other government data sources, PwC estimated the data center industry’s employment level in 2023. PwC used the BEA data on the industry’s labor income and GDP without any further adjustment.

NAICS code 518210 is selected to represent the data center industry in this study because it encompasses a broad range of services and activities in the industry, such as data storage, cloud computing, and data management. It should be noted that this NAICS code may not capture every aspect of the industry, and some businesses within the industry may also operate under different NAICS codes based on their specific activities.

PwC built customized IMPLAN input-output models for the United States as a whole and each state to calculate the data center industry’s indirect and induced economic contributions to each study area in terms of employment, labor income, value added, and tax payments.