Few investment stories have a more compelling sales pitch in 2026 than data centers. The largest technology companies in the world are pouring money into artificial intelligence, which requires massive computing capacity. All that computing capacity must live somewhere, and that somewhere is data centers.
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“The most direct, first-order way to invest in the ongoing scaling of the physical infrastructure layer underpinning the unprecedented growth in cloud and AI is through data centers,” says Jordan Sadler, senior vice president of public and private investor relations at Digital Realty Trust Inc. (ticker: DLR).
Data center real estate investment trusts let investors become the landlords of this digital expansion. Think of these companies as digital warehouses: They own specialized buildings that contain the hardware powering cloud services and AI applications. REITs must generally distribute at least 90% of their taxable income to shareholders, which can also make them appealing to income-seeking investors.
“The big hyper-scalers like Amazon, Meta, Alphabet and Microsoft are spending an exorbitant amount of money on building out these massive data centers,” some of which exceed 1 million square feet, says Steven Conners, founder and president of Conners Wealth Management in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) alone are expected to spend a combined $400 billion on capital expenditures in 2026, largely driven by AI demand. But a powerful growth story doesn’t guarantee a powerful investment return.
“The big risk is the rich valuations that these REITs have,” Conners says. “Any hiccups — and if spending were to slow — these REITs would see their respective stocks get hurt.”
The best data center REITs therefore need more than a connection to AI. They should possess desirable locations — Conners looks for rural-based REITs with connections to urban areas — secured power, sustainable leasing demand, manageable debt and sufficient financial strength to complete costly developments.
The following five companies offer some of the most compelling combinations of growth potential and investment quality. Just bear in mind that none are without risk.
[Read: 10 of the Best REITs to Buy for 2026]
| REIT | Market Cap | Forward Dividend Yield |
| Equinix Inc. (EQIX) | $104 billion | 2% |
| Digital Realty Trust Inc. (DLR) | $73 billion | 2.5% |
| Keppel DC REIT (SGX: AJBU.SI) | $4.2 billion | 5% |
| Digital Core REIT (SGX: DCRU.SI) | $615 million | 7.5% |
| Iron Mountain Inc. (IRM) | $36.2 billion | 2.8% |
Equinix Inc. (EQIX)
At $104 billion in market capitalization, Equinix is one of the largest digital infrastructure companies in the world. It spans six continents with 281 data centers supporting 513,000 connections. It’s this interconnectivity that really sets EQIX apart from competitors. Rather than being just a collection of server-filled buildings, Equinix acts as a digital meeting place for its customers. This creates a network effect where the platform becomes increasingly valuable as more companies join. Equinix had such strong demand in the second quarter of 2026 that management raised its full-year guidance by $100 million in revenue.
Digital Realty Trust Inc. (DLR)
Digital Realty may offer the broadest all-in-one approach to data center investing. “Digital Realty is the only global, full-spectrum provider of data centers, ranging from smaller, network-dense facilities to the newest and largest-scale facilities available in top-tier markets,” Sadler says. Its scale is equally striking with more than 300 data centers across 30 countries, plus another $20 billion of additional data centers under construction, he says. The company ended the second quarter with a record $1.9 billion backlog of signed leases that have yet to begin, a promising sign for what’s to come.
Keppel DC REIT (SGX: AJBU.SI)
The strongest digital infrastructure investment cases aren’t necessarily in the U.S. The Asia-Pacific data center market is experiencing “an unprecedented boom” due to the rapidly expanding demand from AI, cloud adoption and digitalization, according to real estate investment firm CBRE. Global commercial real estate and investment?management firm JLL expects data center capacity in the region to expand from 32 gigawatts to 57 gigawatts by 2030, a 12% compound annual growth rate. Keppel is one of the clearest ways to capitalize on this boom. The Singapore-listed REIT owns 25 data centers across 10 countries, with roughly 84% of its assets concentrated in Asia-Pacific markets as of the end of 2025.
Digital Core REIT (SGX: DCRU.SI)
Digital Core REIT offers a smaller, pure-play alternative to access Digital Realty’s operating platform. With a forward dividend yield above 7%, this Singapore-listed data center REIT is hard to ignore. Being exclusively sponsored by Digital Realty means it has access to the same relationships, data center know-how and potential acquisition pipeline. Its portfolio includes 11 data centers valued at around $1.9 billion with 97% occupancy, as of June 30. The company’s smaller size can create more room for growth, but it also makes customer concentration important to monitor.
Iron Mountain Inc. (IRM)
Iron Mountain is a bit of a curveball where data center REITs are concerned, but that’s what makes it interesting. What began as a mushroom farm-turned-paper storage company has grown into a global information-management business with a rapidly growing data center portfolio. Its business is supported by decades-long customer relationships, including more than 90% of Fortune 1000 companies, and a customer retention rate of 98%. It had leased 110 megawatts of data center capacity year to date as of Aug. 5. Its data center, digital and asset life cycle management segment grew by more than 50% year over year in the second quarter. The Q2 results were so strong that management raised its full-year revenue guidance by about 16%.
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5 Best Data Center REITs to Invest in Digital Infrastructure originally appeared on usnews.com
