DC Market Insights projects the global data center cooling tower market will grow from USD 1.12 billion in 2025 to USD 2.44 billion in 2035, a compound annual rate of 8.06%. The firm puts 2026 at USD 1.30 billion, up 15.65% on 2025. Its low and high cases for the 2025-2035 rate are 6.11% and 9.87%.

Water rules shift what operators buy

The report says hybrid and adiabatic coolers grow fastest, at 12.39% a year, and rise from 25.0% to 37.0% of market value by 2035. DC Market Insights says these units use water only on the hottest days, which suits water-disclosure rules better than open towers. It names such laws in the European Union, California and Utah.

Open-circuit towers lead in 2025 with 45.0% of value, or USD 505.90 million, but grow only 4.76% a year. They still hold the largest share in 2035, at 33.0%.

The report also points to 45 °C liquid-cooled AI racks, which can run on dry coolers. It cites NVIDIA's figure of about 2.6 million gallons of water per MW a year for conventional evaporative designs. DC Market Insights models the evaporative share of new AI capacity falling from 48% in 2025 to 30% in 2035.

Growth slows from the 2020-2025 pace

The market grew 14.77% a year from 2020 to 2025, when new data center IT capacity doubled from 6,000 MW to 12,000 MW a year. The forecast has new capacity reaching 27,000 MW a year by 2035. Evaporative-served new capacity still rises from 5,448 MW to 8,467 MW a year, even as its share of new builds falls from 45.4% to 31.4%.

Replacement and service work grows faster than new equipment

Replacement and rebuild work grows 9.77% a year, and service and maintenance grows 10.36% a year. Together, replacement, rebuild and service work rises from 36.2% of the market in 2025 to 43.4% in 2035.

North America leads with 44.0% of 2025 value, or USD 494.66 million. The United States accounts for USD 438.45 million. Latin America is the fastest-growing region at 11.99% a year, and India is the fastest-growing large country at 14.82%. SPX Technologies (Marley), Baltimore Aircoil Company and EVAPCO hold about 50% combined.

Amit Jain, the report's author at DC Market Insights, wrote that the cooling tower decision "is now a water decision as much as a thermal one."