Last year, Bitkom published its first Smart City Index. The ranking is intended to demonstrate the digital positioning of Germany's major cities. In the first edition, Munich ranked fifth. In the 2020 edition, however, Munich made a significant leap forward, reaching second place behind Hamburg. It is followed by Cologne, Darmstadt, Karlsruhe, and Stuttgart. Berlin reached seventh place. Following behind are Osnabrück, Aachen, Heidelberg, and Düsseldorf. Leipzig achieved the best result among all major cities in eastern Germany, ranking 12th.
"The Smart City Index shows how digital Germany's major cities are. The many changes in position compared to the previous year illustrate the enormous dynamism in the smart city landscape,"
says Bitkom CEO Bernhard Rohleder.
These categories are measured by the Smart City Index
The respective scores for the 81 cities examined, each with at least 100,000 inhabitants, are calculated from five subcategories: administration, IT and communications, energy and environment, mobility, and society. These five areas are further broken down into 38 individual indicators, which in turn consist of a total of 136 parameters – from online citizen services to mobility sharing and smart trash cans to the availability of broadband connections. Bernhard Rohleder says:
“Success factors for a smart city are not only good financial strength, but above all a comprehensive digital strategy that is integrated into urban development.”
