Summary
- Annualised gross bookings reached $533m, increasing 35% year on year.
- Interconnection revenue increased 10%, while Equinix Fabric revenue rose 24%.
- Equinix accelerated planned cabinet deliveries and completed an investment in Nordic operator atNorth.
Equinix recorded $533m in annualised gross bookings during the third quarter of 2026, an increase of 35% year on year, as demand for colocation, interconnection, and supporting digital infrastructure continued to expand.
The company reported quarterly revenue of $2.571bn, an 11% increase on a reported basis, with operating income rising 27% to $600m. It raised its full-year guidance for the third consecutive quarter.
Annualised gross bookings measure the recurring revenue value of new customer commitments expressed on an annual basis. They are distinct from revenue recognised during the quarter and may take time to convert into operating income as the associated services enter use.
Monthly recurring revenue increased by double digits for the fourth consecutive quarter. Interconnection revenue rose 10%, while revenue from Equinix Fabric increased 24%, both on a reported and normalised constant-currency basis.
Equinix added approximately 6,900 net interconnections during the reporting period. These connections allow customers to link equipment and services across network providers, cloud platforms, and other infrastructure environments.
The company’s physical capacity programme has also accelerated. Equinix now expects to deliver nearly 40% more cabinets in 2026 than originally planned, reflecting changes to deployment requirements and the pace at which new accommodation is being brought into service.
Cabinet deliveries are not directly equivalent to additional megawatts. The electrical capacity associated with individual cabinets varies considerably, depending on their intended IT equipment, power distribution, and cooling design.
The distinction is becoming increasingly relevant as accelerator-based computing raises rack power requirements. A relatively small number of high-density racks can require more electricity and cooling infrastructure than a much larger installation of conventional enterprise equipment.
Equinix has been developing infrastructure intended to support these requirements, including liquid cooling test environments where customers and technology suppliers can validate equipment before committing to larger deployments.
Its Enhanced Performance Innovation Centers are designed to provide production-representative environments for evaluating advanced computing and thermal configurations. Such testing can identify equipment compatibility, coolant flow, electrical requirements, and operational procedures before installation at scale.
During the quarter, Equinix also introduced Fabric One, a connectivity service intended to simplify connections between distributed cloud, network, and AI environments. AWS and Google Cloud are identified as lead integration partners.
The company separately introduced Inference Exchange, developed with NVIDIA and Together AI, to support the deployment of inference workloads across interconnected infrastructure locations.
These services build on Equinix’s established interconnection business. Their ability to support demanding workloads still depends on adequate physical infrastructure, including suitable data centre space, electrical connections, cooling systems, and telecommunications capacity.
Equinix also completed its investment in Nordic operator atNorth alongside CPP Investments, expanding its exposure to European high-density computing infrastructure.
Nordic locations can offer different electricity, climate, and development conditions from established metropolitan colocation markets. Their suitability for individual workloads nevertheless depends on network connectivity, available power, customer requirements, and the arrangements needed to operate the installations.
The company expects total capital expenditure during 2026 to range between $5bn and $6bn. That investment supports construction, infrastructure expansion, upgrades, and other activities required to deliver and maintain capacity.
Equinix’s operating results provide a second measure alongside bookings. Quarterly adjusted EBITDA reached approximately $1.32bn and adjusted funds from operations totalled about $1.16bn, figures which reflect the performance of the existing operating business rather than the theoretical revenue of unfinished facilities.
The company’s new interconnection products and its investment in atNorth represent different types of expansion. Fabric One adds software-managed access within the connectivity ecosystem, while atNorth provides additional exposure to physical data centre developments in the Nordic region. Those activities cannot be measured using a single capacity figure.
A new cabinet only contributes revenue once the necessary physical infrastructure and customer deployment are ready. Power, cooling and internal connections must therefore progress alongside the physical accommodation. The accelerated delivery schedule provides more opportunities to meet customer orders, but it also increases the coordination required across engineering, procurement and commissioning.
Equinix completed its investment in atNorth alongside CPP Investments, rather than acquiring the Nordic operator outright. The partnership expands its exposure to regional infrastructure without adding atNorth facilities to the number of cabinets being delivered directly through Equinix’s own data centres.
Further results will establish how quickly the higher level of customer bookings converts into installed, connected, and revenue-producing infrastructure, alongside the effect of new electrical and cooling requirements on delivery costs.
