Meta Platforms' earnings release on Oct. 21 gave the headline capital spending number. The Form 10-Q, signed the same day, covers the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026, and goes further. It shows how much of Meta's future data center footprint is already committed through leases, purchase agreements and joint ventures that do not yet appear as finished buildings.
The biggest figure in the filing is about $355.73 billion in operating and finance leases that Meta has signed but that have not yet commenced. According to the 10-Q, these leases cover data centers, energy-related infrastructure, colocation and certain network infrastructure. They begin during the remainder of 2026 through 2036, with terms ranging from more than one year to 30 years.
Separately, the filing reports $454.52 billion in non-cancelable contractual commitments. The 10-Q says these mostly relate to third-party cloud capacity arrangements and investments in servers and network infrastructure, energy service agreements for data centers, and consumer hardware products in Reality Labs.
What "leases not yet commenced" means
Under lease accounting, a lease generally goes on the balance sheet when the lessee gains control of the asset, usually when a facility or piece of equipment is delivered and ready for use. Until then, a signed lease is disclosed but not recorded as a right-of-use asset and liability. The $355.73 billion figure is therefore a forward-looking pipeline: obligations Meta has agreed to, for capacity that is still being built, energized or handed over.
For utilities, local officials and communities near proposed campuses, the distinction matters. A large share of the capacity Meta plans to use will not be in buildings it owns. It will sit in facilities leased to Meta over long terms, and in colocation and energy-related infrastructure provided under contract. The 10-Q does not break the lease total down by site or state.
The Louisiana and Texas ventures
The filing gives the most detail on two data center joint ventures. According to the 10-Q:
- Meta holds a 20% membership interest in each of two ventures to co-develop data center campuses, one in Louisiana, entered in October 2025, and one in Texas, entered in July 2026.
- The parties to each venture have committed to fund their respective pro rata shares of total estimated development costs of approximately $27 billion for the Louisiana venture and $14 billion for the Texas venture.
- Meta is not the primary beneficiary of either venture and does not consolidate the variable interest entities, so their assets and debt are not consolidated onto Meta's balance sheet. Meta accounts for its stake under the equity method.
- The carrying value of Meta's equity investments in the ventures was $4,732 million at Sept. 30, 2026, up from $1,826 million at Dec. 31, 2025.
- Meta reports $18,476 million in lease commitments to the ventures and $3,703 million in future funding commitments.
Put together, the figures show a structure in which Meta holds a minority equity stake, shares in funding the development costs, and has entered into lease agreements with each venture. The 10-Q excerpts reviewed here do not name the other members or give the precise campus locations within either state.
Capex: the quarter, the year to date and the guidance
The 10-Q reports Q3 capital expenditures, including principal payments on finance leases, of $34.91 billion, and $85.82 billion for the first nine months of 2026.
In its third-quarter earnings release, dated Oct. 21, Meta said it now expects full-year 2026 capex, including finance lease principal payments, of $135 billion to $145 billion, narrowed from the prior outlook of $130 billion to $145 billion. By simple arithmetic, the nine-month total implies fourth-quarter capex of roughly $49 billion to $59 billion if spending lands within the guided range. Meta did not give a fourth-quarter capex figure in the sources reviewed.
The release also guided full-year 2026 total expenses to $175 billion to $179 billion and disclosed a $9.9 billion charge related to legal proceedings recognized in the third quarter.
That charge helps explain the gap between Meta's revenue and earnings results. According to an independent summary by Newsquawk, Meta reported third-quarter earnings per share of $3.83, against an expected $6.67, on revenue of $64.6 billion, against an expected $63.31 billion. Newsquawk characterized the pattern as a cost-side rather than demand-side event and reported a fourth-quarter revenue outlook of $73 billion to $76 billion.
How the buildout is being funded
The 10-Q reports $82.45 billion in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at quarter end. It also discloses about $24.91 billion in net proceeds from fixed-rate senior unsecured notes issued in May 2026, and $10.80 billion of money market funds reclassified as restricted cash equivalents because of escrow requirements under certain multi-year infrastructure purchase agreements.
According to the filing, those escrowed funds are restricted from general corporate use and are expected to be released between 2028 and 2030 as the underlying purchase obligations are satisfied. The excerpts reviewed here do not identify the counterparties.
What Meta has and has not said about 2027
Meta's earnings release states that "we are still developing our budget and capacity plans for next year," and that it expects to continue investing aggressively to support its core business and emerging AI initiatives. The company did not give a 2027 capex figure in the sources reviewed.
Analysts have published their own numbers. In pre-earnings coverage, Goldesel.de, citing International Business Times Australia, reported that Bank of America expected 2027 capex of $205 billion and Guggenheim expected $225 billion. These are analyst estimates, not company statements, and were published before the Oct. 21 results.
Why the filing matters beyond Meta
The 10-Q puts a large share of Meta's infrastructure plans into hard numbers on contracts that are already signed: hundreds of billions in leases and purchase commitments running into the next decade, and two state-level ventures with a combined estimated development cost of about $41 billion. For grid planners and local governments, those contracts tie the capacity to an identifiable tenant. For developers and financiers, the joint venture structure shows a minority-equity, long-lease model applied to campuses costing tens of billions of dollars each.
The filing does not, however, translate those dollar figures into megawatts, acreage, water use or jobs in the sections reviewed. None of the sources cited here gives those figures for the Louisiana or Texas ventures.
What Happens Next
According to the 10-Q, the leases not yet commenced begin during the remainder of 2026 through 2036, and the $10.80 billion of escrowed funds is expected to be released between 2028 and 2030 as purchase obligations are satisfied. Under the funding commitments disclosed in the filing, the parties to the Louisiana and Texas ventures have committed to fund their pro rata shares of the development costs. Meta's earnings release says the company is still developing its budget and capacity plans for next year. Its stated outlook includes fourth-quarter revenue of $73 billion to $76 billion, as reported by Newsquawk, and full-year 2026 capex of $135 billion to $145 billion. None of the sources cited gives a date for a 2027 capex announcement.
