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Title card: Top 10 Smart Cities of 2026 - Inside the IMD Smart City Index
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Top 10 Smart Cities of 2026: Inside the IMD Smart City Index

Smart City Bot

Which cities do residents themselves rate as the smartest? The IMD Smart City Index 2026, now in its seventh edition, answers that for 148 cities worldwide. This report covers the top ten, their IMD ratings, and the verified programmes behind them.

How the IMD Smart City Index works

The IMD World Competitiveness Center builds the index almost entirely from surveys. Its 2026 methodology captures the perceptions of some 120 residents in each city, weighting the last three years of results 3:2:1. Residents rate two pillars: Structures (existing infrastructure) and Technology (the digital services available to them), across health and safety, mobility, activities, opportunities and governance. Cities get an overall rank and a rating from AAA to D.

The 2026 top 10 at a glance

Ratings come from IMD’s full 2026 report.

RankCityCountryRatingStandout initiative
1ZurichSwitzerlandAAASmart City strategy
2OsloNorwayAAClimate budget, EVs
3GenevaSwitzerlandAAOnline services, open geodata
4LondonUKATfL open data
5CopenhagenDenmarkAAGreen waves for cyclists
6DubaiUAEAPaperless government
7LausanneSwitzerlandAIT strategy 2023-2027
8CanberraAustraliaADigital strategy, smart parking
9SingaporeSingaporeAAASmart Nation 2.0
10Abu DhabiUAEATAMM platform

Only Zurich and Singapore hold an AAA overall rating.

1. Zurich, Switzerland (AAA)

Zurich kept the top spot. IMD reports that its Structures score (0.725) clearly leads its Technology score (0.621), that more than three-quarters of residents find information on local government decisions easily accessible, and that it has the highest citizen participation score in the top 20.

  • Strategy. The Strategie Smart City Zürich (2018) focuses on integrated public mobility, the “Digital City” and “Smart Participation”.
  • Mobility. It expanded traffic counting to around 140 points and aims for largely electric public transport by 2030.
  • Innovation. Pilot projects can receive up to CHF 150,000, and the Smart City programme brings outside “Innovation Fellows” into city departments for 12 to 15 months.

2. Oslo, Norway (AA)

Oslo held second place, rated AAA on Structures and A on Technology.

  • Climate budget. Oslo’s climate budget is embedded in the city’s fiscal budget and follows its annual cycle, and each city entity reports on its assigned measures.
  • EVs. According to the city’s Climate Agency, 93 per cent of new cars sold in Oslo in 2025 were fully electric, supported by more than 2,600 public charging points.
  • Fleets and homes. Buses and ferries have shifted to electricity, and the city subsidises up to 30 per cent of charging infrastructure costs in housing cooperatives.

3. Geneva, Switzerland (AA)

Geneva held third. IMD says its residents, like Zurich’s, rate infrastructure and services above the technology itself.

  • Online services. The canton offered 191 online procedures in 2025, and 85 per cent of residents had used at least one in the past two years.
  • Open geodata. The SITG portal offers territorial data for Greater Geneva in 2D and 3D. Access is free, with data either open or available on login.
  • City plan. The City of Geneva’s 2025-2030 digital master plan includes an “e-Genève” portfolio for online services and smart technology.

4. London, United Kingdom (A)

London rose two places to fourth. It is the only top-five city rated higher on Technology (AA) than on Structures (BBB).

  • Transport open data. More than 17,000 developers have registered for TfL’s open data. TfL says its open data powers over 600 UK travel apps used by more than 42 per cent of Londoners, with benefits valued at up to £130m a year.
  • The London Datastore. The Greater London Authority’s London Datastore lets anyone access and use data held by the GLA and other public bodies, for free.

5. Copenhagen, Denmark (AA)

Copenhagen climbed two places to fifth, rated AAA on Structures.

  • Green waves. According to the Cycling Embassy of Denmark, a 2004 green wave across 13 junctions on Nørrebrogade raised average cycling speed from 15.5 to 20.3 km/h.
  • Smart signals. On Nørrefarimagsgade, cameras count cyclists; if more than 300 pass in 15 minutes, or travel time on the stretch exceeds 2 minutes 30 seconds, the signals give them a longer green phase.
  • Corridors. A 2026 city evaluation report sets out 15 cyclist green-wave corridors to be monitored with counters, cameras and bike data.

6. Dubai, United Arab Emirates (A)

Dubai slipped two places to sixth. IMD reports 95.7 per cent trust in online services among its residents.

  • Paperless government. In December 2021, Dubai announced its Paperless Strategy, launched in 2018, was complete across 45 government entities, saving more than 336 million sheets of paper, AED 1.3 billion and 14 million work hours.
  • Transport command centre. The RTA’s Enterprise Command & Control Centre (EC3) integrates control of the Metro, Tram, taxis and traffic systems. The RTA describes it as one of the largest and most modern control centres in the world.

7. Lausanne, Switzerland (A)

Lausanne rose three places to seventh, rated AA on Structures.

8. Canberra, Australia (A)

Canberra held eighth place, rated AA on Structures and BBB on Technology.

  • Digital strategy. The ACT Digital Strategy has five focus areas, including community-centred services and “city planning by design”, combining connected technology and data to model, monitor and plan the city in real time.
  • Smart parking. A 2016 Manuka trial showed drivers 460 sensor-equipped bays on the ParkCBR app, backed by LED availability signs on the street. The ACT now publishes its parking sensor locations as open data.

9. Singapore (AAA)

Singapore held ninth and is rated AAA on both pillars. IMD says its Structures and Technology scores (0.715 and 0.697) are the most balanced in the top ten, and nearly nine in ten residents say online information has increased their trust in authorities.

  • Smart Nation 2.0. Launched in October 2024 around three goals, Trust, Growth and Community, with an extra S$120 million for “AI for Science”.
  • Digital twin. Virtual Singapore is a data-rich 3D model of the country that lets planners and researchers run urban planning simulations.

10. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (A)

Abu Dhabi fell five places to complete the top ten, rated A on both pillars, with 89 per cent trust in online services.

  • One platform. TAMM brings together more than 1,200 public and private services. In the first half of 2026 it handled 55.5 million transactions, about 98 per cent digitally.
  • Proactive AI. TAMM AutoGov launched in October 2025, uses agentic AI to complete tasks such as paying traffic fines. It helped users avoid more than AED 17 million in late fees in six months and won a 2026 Gartner Eye on Innovation award.

“What stays with me from my travels to London, Singapore, Dubai and Abu Dhabi is how little you have to think about getting around. In London, one contactless card works on the Tube and the buses, and countdown timers at crossings tell you exactly how long you have. In Singapore, crossings feel calm and well timed, and seniors can tap a card for extra time at the signal. Dubai’s driverless metro runs like clockwork. None of it feels like ‘technology’. It simply works, and that is how a smart city should feel.”

Sourish Dey, Director, Trisim Global Solutions

Common threads

IMD’s central 2026 finding is that technology alone does not make a city smart. Across all 148 cities, Structures scores predict overall performance more strongly than Technology scores, and almost every city in the bottom 20 scores higher on Technology than on Structures. As IMD’s Arturo Bris put it, the leaders stand out for how well they align governance, sustainability, public investment and citizen trust.

Lessons for city planners and building owners

Trisim’s view

In Trisim’s view, technology delivers lasting value only when it rests on strong operations and trusted governance. Trisim Global Solutions helps cities and enterprises build control rooms, surveillance and smart building systems on that foundation.

Planning a control room, surveillance or smart building project? Get in touch with our team.

Sources

  1. IMD World Competitiveness Center, “Smart City Index 2026 – The Ranking”, 2026. imd.org
  2. IMD, “Transparency and public trust are key to urban success, IMD Smart City Index 2026 finds”, March 2026. imd.org
  3. IMD, “SCI 2026 Methodology”, 2026. imd.org
  4. IMD, “IMD Smart City Index 2026” (full report), April 2026. imd.widen.net
  5. Stadt Zürich, “Stadtrat präsentiert Strategie und Umsetzungsplan für Smart City Zürich”, 5 December 2018. stadt-zuerich.ch
  6. Stadt Zürich, “Smart City”, accessed October 2026. stadt-zuerich.ch
  7. City of Oslo Climate Agency, “Oslo’s Climate Budgeting process – annual cycle”, accessed October 2026. klimaoslo.no
  8. City of Oslo Climate Agency, “Oslo’s Electric Revolution: How EVs Transformed a City”, 16 September 2025. klimaoslo.no
  9. République et canton de Genève, “Cyberadministration à Genève: un bilan 2025 positif et de nouvelles évolutions à venir”, 5 May 2026. ge.ch
  10. République et canton de Genève, “Consulter les géodonnées et la cartographie”, updated 13 February 2025. ge.ch
  11. Ville de Genève, “Plan directeur de la transformation numérique de la Ville de Genève”, updated 26 May 2025. geneve.ch
  12. Transport for London, “Open data policy”, accessed October 2026. tfl.gov.uk
  13. Greater London Authority, “About – London Datastore”, accessed October 2026. data.london.gov.uk
  14. Cycling Embassy of Denmark, “ITS solutions for cyclists”, accessed October 2026. cyclingsolutions.info
  15. City of Copenhagen / Interreg North Sea (MegaBITS), “Evaluation report Copenhagen”, April 2026. interregnorthsea.eu
  16. Government of Dubai Media Office, “Hamdan bin Mohammed: Dubai has become the world’s first paperless government”, 11 December 2021. mediaoffice.ae
  17. Roads and Transport Authority Dubai, “Enterprise Command & Control Centre (EC3)”, accessed October 2026. rta.ae
  18. Ville de Lausanne, “Politique du service” (IT strategy 2023-2027, report-notice No. 2022/38 of 8 December 2022), accessed October 2026. lausanne.ch
  19. Ville de Lausanne, “Numérique responsable”, accessed October 2026. lausanne.ch
  20. Ville de Lausanne, “Vidéosurveillance”, accessed October 2026. lausanne.ch
  21. ACT Government, “ACT Digital Strategy”, accessed October 2026. act.gov.au
  22. The Canberra Times, “Smart parking trial launched in Manuka”, 29 April 2016. canberratimes.com.au
  23. data.gov.au, “ACTGOV Smart Parking Sensor Assets”, updated 2026. data.gov.au
  24. Ministry of Digital Development and Information, Singapore, “Launch of Smart Nation 2”, 1 October 2024. mddi.gov.sg
  25. GovTech Singapore, “5 things to know about Virtual Singapore”, 28 March 2017. tech.gov.sg
  26. Abu Dhabi Media Office, “Department of Government Enablement announces establishment of TAMM Global company to expand TAMM platform’s global reach”, 16 October 2026. mediaoffice.abudhabi
  27. Gulf News, “Abu Dhabi’s TAMM handles 55.5m transactions, with 98% completed digitally”, 15 August 2026. gulfnews.com
  28. Abu Dhabi Media Office, “TAMM AutoGov named EMEA winner at 2026 Gartner Eye on Innovation Awards”, 19 October 2026. mediaoffice.abudhabi

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