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- Data center electricity share
Data center electricity share
Our World in Data's bar chart drew 17.8K views on X: 0.6x its typical post and #116 of 139 Our World in Data charts we track by views. Read Oct 10, 2026.
Around 5% of electricity in the United States is used for data centers, far more than the global average.
Why it spread
It spread because it explained itself and rode a hot topic that week, with 17,751 views, 246 likes, 85 reposts, 9 quotes, and 44 saves.
What worked
- The post text explains the chart in plain language, stating that around 5% of electricity in the United States is used for data centers and around 1.5% of the world's electricity was used for data centers in 2025.
- The chart is a bar showing that the US leads data center electricity consumption share, which makes the comparison easy to grasp at a glance.
- The post is branded, shows a source line, and has high self labelling, so viewers can trust and share it without extra context.
What to borrow
We could pair a simple bar chart with a short self explaining caption that contrasts a national figure with a global figure, and add our brand and source line so it travels on its own.
Careful
Do not over read the quote rate as proof of debate, since 9 quotes is small next to 85 reposts, and do not assume the same framing will work for every topic just because this one was hot that week.
Written by our analysis model from the measured numbers above, not by Our World in Data.
Make it yours
Your numbers, in this bar chart.
Starts from the real numbers of "5% of United States electricity is used for data centers" by Our World in Data. Replace every number with yours before you post. Make one like this, step by step
Free pictures carry a small "Made with ViralChart" line. That line is how other people find us.
API · Max
Use this chart via API
On the Max plan you can pull this chart's numbers with the provenance of each one, as JSON or CSV, with its redraw spec, or call it from an agent over MCP. Chart id d2e385b61f47.
| Path | Returns | Plan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GET | /api/v1/charts/d2e385b61f47 | Title, publisher, date, form, point count; with a Max key, the data link | Open |
| GET | /api/v1/charts/d2e385b61f47/data | Every point with its provenance and confidence, plus the redraw spec. Add ?format=csv for CSV | Max |
| GET | /api/v1/charts/d2e385b61f47/render?view=1 | The draw-only view this page uses | Open |
| POST | /mcp | Tool get_chart_data with this id, for Claude, Cursor and other agents | Max |
curl -s https://viral-chart.com/api/v1/charts/d2e385b61f47/data \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $VIRALCHART_KEY"claude mcp add --transport http viralchart https://viral-chart.com/mcp \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $VIRALCHART_KEY"60 requests a minute per key; over that you get 429 with Retry-After. Up to 5 keys per account, made on your account page and shown once. Without Max, the data route answers 402 with a link to the plans. The numbers describe a chart its publisher owns, and every file carries a license note.
More from Our World in Data
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Questions people ask
How far did Our World in Data's "Data center electricity share" chart travel?
17,751 views, 246 likes, 85 reposts and 44 saves on X, read Oct 10, 2026. A normal post from @OurWorldInData gets about 28.6K views.
What kind of chart is it?
A bar chart. US leads data center electricity consumption share.
Can I use Our World in Data's chart?
Use the format, not the picture. The chart, logo and design belong to Our World in Data. ViralChart redraws the chart type with your numbers and words, and credits the original publisher.