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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11Illinois’ projected 121,000 data-center-related jobs are not 121,000 permanent facility jobs. The figure includes construction and wider economic effects; the sources differ slightly on ongoing positions, with TechRadar reporting 2,800 and the Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI) saying 3,000 per year. A separate modeled estimate says household electricity bills could rise by about $150 annually under a scenario that adds 6.5 gigawatts of demand by 2035. These are forecasts, not jobs already created or charges already applied to household bills.
What the 121,000-job projection counts
ILEPI’s 2026 study, based on 75 data-center project case studies and economic-impact modeling with IMPLAN, examines a projected $57 billion in Illinois investment over the coming decade. Its job estimate covers more than the staff who will operate completed facilities. It includes buildout work and economic activity beyond data-center sites, so it should not be read as a permanent headcount.
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| Employment category | Reported estimate | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Total projected jobs through 2035 | 121,000, as reported by TechRadar in 2026 | A broad modeled employment impact, not 121,000 ongoing data-center positions. |
| Construction work | 39,000 skilled construction jobs, according to ILEPI’s 2026 release | Jobs associated with building out facilities; the release does not describe all of them as permanent. |
| Permanent facility roles | 2,800 in TechRadar’s account; 3,000 positions per year once facilities operate in ILEPI’s release | The sources report slightly different figures. Both describe a much smaller ongoing workforce than the broad total. |
| Wider or induced activity | More than 41,000 induced jobs, according to ILEPI; 41,751 jobs linked to increased consumer spending, according to TechRadar | The accounts use different descriptions and categories. Do not add these figures to the other rows as if they were a single, verified breakdown. |
The practical distinction is between temporary construction employment, direct operations jobs at open facilities, and jobs supported indirectly through suppliers, local businesses, and spending. The “only 2,800” framing refers to permanent positions in TechRadar’s version of the study, not to the entire employment impact. The available accounts do not provide a reconciled breakdown showing precisely how every category contributes to the 121,000 total.
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How the electricity-bill estimate should be read
The roughly $150-a-year household figure is a modeled estimate attributed to TechRadar’s account of the ILEPI study. It is associated with a mid-range scenario that adds 6.5 gigawatts of electricity demand by 2035. It is not a bill increase already imposed on every Illinois household, and the projection depends on the scenario’s assumptions about new load and the electricity system.
ILEPI’s release says data centers account for 7% of Illinois electricity demand and that the projected additional demand could raise total electricity-system costs by almost 10%. System costs and an individual household’s bill are related but are not interchangeable measures.
| Analysis | Geography and period | Reported result | Why it is not a direct apples-to-apples comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| ILEPI study, as reported by TechRadar in 2026 | Illinois; mid-range scenario through 2035 | 6.5 GW of added demand and about $150 per year in potential household bill increases | A statewide projection tied to a specified demand scenario. |
| Synapse Energy Economics analysis, April 30, 2025 | ComEd region; additional data-center load modeled through 2040 | 29 TWh of added load; $18 billion in higher net-present-value system costs, 30% above its base case; an 8.3% modeled average residential bill increase, or about $10 per month | A separate regional model with its own assumptions. Its dollar amounts are in 2022 dollars, and its results reflect factors including queue delays, generation costs, transmission, and regional imports. Synapse distinguishes the ComEd result from broader PJM impacts. |
Illinois’ 2025 Resource Adequacy Study, produced jointly by the Illinois Power Agency, Illinois Commerce Commission, and Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, identifies supply-adequacy challenges in both PJM and MISO that are likely to affect Illinois supply costs and reliability. That system-wide finding provides context; it does not attribute a particular household bill increase to data centers alone.
What Illinois may gain—and what remains uncertain
ILEPI describes Illinois as one of the top 10 states for data-center development and the Chicago area as the third-largest U.S. market. Its release reports roughly $16 billion in facility construction spending during 2020–2024, alongside the additional $57 billion in investment planned over the next decade. The investment and employment figures are projections and economic-impact estimates, not a guarantee that all announced projects will be completed.
The study also estimates nearly $300 million a year in statewide property taxes from data centers and models the possibility of 3% to 10% property-tax relief in an average-sized county if a new hyperscale center is built. Those are modeled local-finance effects, not guaranteed savings for individual taxpayers. How much a community benefits depends on project outcomes and local tax and spending decisions; those figures do not by themselves establish the net effect after public costs or new infrastructure needs.
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ILEPI coauthor Jacob Hager said Illinois would need additional clean power and policy reforms to protect ratepayers as facilities come online, despite the state currently being a net energy exporter. Hager also identified requiring data centers to invest in their own energy and infrastructure needs as a potentially valuable policy tool. Coauthor Frank Manzo IV pointed to the sector’s contributions to economic growth, high-wage employment, and the property-tax base. These are the study authors’ assessments, not guarantees about the outcome of any particular project.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What policy choices are on the table
ILEPI’s release summarizes several options aimed at balancing development with energy, environmental, and ratepayer concerns:
- Require data centers to cover 100% of the energy needs created by new demand.
- Bring new clean-energy resources online in Illinois.
- Set stronger energy and environmental conditions for tax exemptions.
- Encourage closed-loop recycled-water or air-cooling systems.
- Expand battery storage and heat recovery, and increase public disclosure.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity says it stopped processing applications for the state’s data-center incentive program beginning July 1, 2026, following the governor’s June 5 directive. Before processing stopped, the program’s stated eligibility requirements included at least $250 million in investment over 60 months and at least 20 new full-time-equivalent jobs, subject to county-relative wage requirements. Those were program conditions, not a description of jobs guaranteed by the ILEPI forecast.
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