Global · hyperscaler spend
Hyperscaler capex: what the five biggest US clouds spend, and where
Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta and Oracle paid $566bn for property and equipment in the four quarters to 2026 Q2, and $182bn in 2026 Q2 alone, 87% more than a year earlier (SEC EDGAR cash capex, pulled 2026-10-11). Their latest 10-Ks put 12–37% of long-lived assets outside the US. None shows an Ireland or European country line except Oracle (UK, Germany).
Updated 11 October 2026 · data build 2026-10-10 · how we know · corrections
$182bn in one quarter, 87% up on a year earlier
Cash paid for property and equipment, five companies, 2026 Q2 against 2025 Q2. Measured
Source: SEC EDGAR XBRL company facts · as of 2026-10-11 · quarters to 2026 Q2 for all five · Compiled by StackPath
Amazon spent the most over the last year; Oracle's quarterly spending rose fastest (+235%)
Quarterly cash capex by company, to the last quarter all five have reported. Each quarter sits in the calendar quarter it ends in; the table has each company's latest. Measured
| Company | Last quarter | $bn | Year earlier | Four quarters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | 2026 Q2 | 35.8 | 17.1 | 115.9 |
| Amazon | 2026 Q2 | 54.2 | 32.2 | 173 |
| Alphabet | 2026 Q2 | 44.9 | 22.4 | 132.4 |
| Meta | 2026 Q2 | 30.1 | 16.5 | 89.3 |
| Oracle | 2026 Q3 | 28.5 | 8.5 | 75.7 |
Source: Microsoft (CIK 0000789019) · Amazon (CIK 0001018724) · Alphabet (CIK 0001652044) · Meta (CIK 0001326801) · Oracle (CIK 0001341439) · as of 2026-10-11 · Compiled by StackPath
Growth compares each company's latest quarter with the same quarter a year earlier. Oracle's latest quarter ends in August, two months after the others.
12–37% of their assets sit outside the US, and no filing names Ireland
Long-lived assets by geography from each company's latest 10-K. These are stocks of assets, not spending, and each company defines them differently. Measured
| Company | As of | US $bn | Outside US $bn | Share outside US | Year before | European lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | 2026-06-30 | 300.4 | 175.2 | 36.8% | 38.1% | none |
| Amazon | 2025-12-31 | – | – | not disclosed | – | none |
| Alphabet | 2025-12-31 | 195.3 | 66.5 | 25.4% | 24.7% | none |
| Meta | 2025-12-31 | 173.4 | 23.4 | 11.9% | 13.8% | none |
| Oracle | 2026-05-31 | 102.7 | 30.5 | 22.9% | 24.5% | United Kingdom $3.9bn, Germany $2.4bn |
Source: Microsoft 10-K · Amazon 10-K · Alphabet 10-K · Meta 10-K · Oracle 10-K · as of 2026-10-11 · Compiled by StackPath
Amazon gives no geographic split of its assets. Its property and equipment by segment at 2025-12-31: AWS $190.1bn (global), North America $122bn, International $30.6bn. Its only European country lines are sales: Germany $45.9bn and the UK $43.2bn in 2025.
Oracle is the only one of the five to name European countries for assets, because it lists every country above 3% of revenue (United Kingdom $3.9bn, up from $2.5bn; Germany $2.4bn, up from $2bn). Microsoft and Meta name only countries above 10% of assets; Alphabet gives US against international.
2026 guidance, as the companies state it: raised, held, or restated
Capex guidance as stated in the latest earnings release or call. Definitions differ: some include assets on finance leases. Reported
| Company | Period | Guidance | Given | Includes finance leases | Earlier guidance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alphabet | FY2026 (calendar) | $195–205bn | 2026-07-22 · Q2 2026 earnings call | no | 2026-02-04: $175–185bn; 2026-04-29: $180–190bn; 2026-07-22: $195–205bn |
| Amazon | FY2026 (calendar) | about $220bn | 2026-07-30 · Q2 2026 earnings call | no | 2026-02-05: $200bn; 2026-04-29: –; 2026-07-30: $220bn |
| Meta | FY2026 (calendar) | $130–145bn | 2026-07-29 · Q2 2026 earnings release | yes | 2026-01-28: $115–135bn; 2026-04-29: $125–145bn; 2026-07-29: $130–145bn |
| Microsoft | CY2026 (calendar) | about $175bn | 2026-07-29 · FY26 Q4 earnings call | yes | 2026-01-28: –; 2026-04-29: $190bn; 2026-07-29: $175bn |
| Oracle | FY2027 (Jun 2026-May 2027) | $90–95bn | 2026-09-10 · Q1 FY2027 earnings call | not stated | 2026-06-10: $90–95bn; 2026-09-10: $90–95bn |
Microsoft's figure fell: CFO Amy Hood: calendar-2026 CapEx investment plans are unchanged, but extending data-centre useful life from 15 to 25 years shifts future data-centre leases from finance to operating leases. Operating leases are not counted in CapEx, so the reported expectation falls to about $175bn. No number given: Alphabet FY2027 (calendar) (No number given. CFO said CapEx is still expected to 'increase significantly in 2027', with details to come later.) Microsoft FY2027 (Jul 2026-Jun 2027) (No full-year dollar figure. Hood: FY27 capital expenditures will grow year over year on demand signals. Q1 FY27 (Jul-Sep 2026) CapEx is expected to be over $50bn, including the lease-reclassification impact.)
Download CSV ↓Source: Alphabet, Q2 2026 earnings call · Amazon, Q2 2026 earnings call · Meta, Q2 2026 earnings release · Microsoft, FY26 Q4 earnings call · Oracle, Q1 FY2027 earnings call · as of 2026-10-11 · Compiled by StackPath
For comparison, Tom's Hardware (Luke James), citing a Financial Times compilation put 4 companies' 2026 plans at about $725bn on 2026-04-30, before the July raises and without Oracle.
What SemiAnalysis says, and what the filings show
Paraphrased from the free sections of SemiAnalysis newsletter posts; their models and paywalled numbers are not used. Editorial judgement
Our reading. Filings show the scale and the direction: the five companies' quarterly cash capex rose 87% in a year, and most of their assets sit in the US. They do not show how much of the spending lands in Europe, or in Ireland. That has to be rebuilt from country pledges, grid queues and planning files: see the pledge-vs-build ledger and data-centre capacity in Europe.
Cash paid for property and equipment (cash-flow statement). Assets taken on finance leases are excluded; they are large for Microsoft, Amazon and Meta, and some guidance figures include them. Amazon's capex covers retail logistics as well as AWS, so it overstates data-centre spend more than the others. Fiscal years differ (Microsoft to 30 June, Oracle to 31 May). Each quarter is placed in the calendar quarter its end date falls in, so Oracle's quarters (ending Aug, Nov, Feb, May) sit one month off. Quarters not tagged directly are derived from year-to-date figures (e.g. Q4 = full year minus nine months). Long-lived assets are as each company defines them (Microsoft: by location of the controlling statutory company; Alphabet and Meta: property and equipment plus operating-lease assets; Oracle: excludes goodwill and intangibles). They are stocks of assets, not spending, and are not comparable across companies. Countries are shown only above each filer's threshold (10% of assets for Microsoft and Meta), so no filer shows an Ireland line today.
Questions people ask
- How much are the hyperscalers spending on capex?
- $566bn in cash capex across Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta and Oracle in the four quarters to 2026 Q2, and $182bn in 2026 Q2 (SEC EDGAR). The biggest spender over that year was Amazon ($173bn), then Alphabet ($132bn).
- How much of hyperscaler spending happens outside the US?
- Filings give assets, not spending, by location. Outside the US: Microsoft 36.8% of long-lived assets (June 2026), Alphabet 25.4% and Meta 11.9% (Dec 2025), Oracle 22.9% (May 2026). Amazon publishes no geographic split of its assets. Definitions differ, so the shares don't add up across companies.
- How much do Microsoft, Google and Amazon spend in Ireland?
- Their filings don't say. Microsoft's 10-K showed an Ireland line until June 2023 ($16.4bn, 8.7% of its long-lived assets); it dropped below the 10% disclosure threshold after that. In their latest 10-Ks Alphabet and Meta split assets only between the US and the rest, Amazon gives no geographic split, and Oracle names the UK and Germany but not Ireland. Irish spending has to be rebuilt from planning, building-control and grid data (see /money#investment).
- What capex have the hyperscalers guided for 2026?
- Alphabet: $195–205bn for FY2026 (calendar) (Q2 2026 earnings call, 2026-07-22); Amazon: about $220bn for FY2026 (calendar) (Q2 2026 earnings call, 2026-07-30); Meta: $130–145bn for FY2026 (calendar) (Q2 2026 earnings release, 2026-07-29); Microsoft: about $175bn for CY2026 (calendar) (FY26 Q4 earnings call, 2026-07-29); Oracle: $90–95bn for FY2027 (Jun 2026-May 2027) (Q1 FY2027 earnings call, 2026-09-10). Company guidance, as reported; definitions differ on finance leases, and Microsoft's lower figure reflects a lease accounting change, not a spending cut.
- Is hyperscaler capex all data centres?
- No. It is cash paid for property and equipment: servers, chips, networking, buildings and land, plus (for Amazon) warehouses and logistics. Equipment leased under finance leases is not in the cash figure, which understates Microsoft, Amazon and Meta.