Microsoft Azure

Circularity in Action

How Microsoft Circular Centers contribute to our zero waste goal

We’ve reached our target of 90% reuse and recycling of servers and cloud hardware components a year early through Microsoft Circular Centers.

In 2024, Microsoft Circular Centers reused more than 3.2M components.

1 Refers to both internal and external reuse.

In 2024, we used our own harvested inventory to fulfill 85% of the demand for obsolete spare parts.

2 Refers only to the demand for spare parts that are no longer manufactured.

Microsoft is transforming how we manage cloud hardware across millions of servers in more than 300 datacenters around the world. In 2020, as part of our journey to become zero waste by 2030, we set a target of reusing or recycling 90% of our servers and components across all cloud hardware by 2025. We established a global circularity program, Microsoft Circular Centers, that helped us reach a 90.9% reuse and recycling rate in 2024.

By considering responsible design and circular economy principles, Microsoft helps optimize the useful life of cloud hardware and its components through reuse and recycling. In addition to reducing electronic waste, or e-waste, we help strengthen the supply chain and create a smarter, more responsible approach to cloud hardware.

Improving reuse and recycling of servers and components for all cloud hardware.

We make hardware easier to repair and upgrade, reducing the need for full replacements and minimizing e-waste.

Designed for circularity

Current Circular Center | Future Circular Center

Optimizing repairability, reusability, and recycling

From the beginning of nearly every cloud hardware component’s design through the end of its lifecycle, Microsoft puts sustainability at the forefront.

Designing for repairability

Designing for reusability

We make hardware and components that stay in circulation longer through reuse.

Microsoft currently has six operational Circular Centers located in:

• Boydton, Virginia, USA
• Chicago, Illinois, USA
• Quincy, Washington, USA
• Amsterdam, the Netherlands
• Dublin, Ireland
• Singapore, Singapore

We’re excited to continue growing our Circular Centers, with more planned for:

Designing for recycling

When we decommission hardware, we think about how to make component recovery more efficient to enable circulation of valuable materials back into the supply chain.

Circular Centers are strategically placed to efficiently service components from multiple datacenters across several regions.