Shanghai Ranked World’s Number 1 Smart City in 2023

Shanghai is the leading smart city in 2023, according to Juniper Research. It has reached the top spot for the second year in a row.

The top five smart cities are Shanghai, New York, Toronto, Seoul, and Shenzhen. Juniper Research’s ranking of 50 world cities is based on an evaluation of many different smart city aspects, covering transportation and infrastructure, energy and lighting, city management and technology, and urban connectivity.

The research analyzed Shanghai as leading due to its Suishenban Citizen Cloud, which provides access to over 1,000 different services for city residents, as well as its strong deployment of 5G, and its use of innovative technologies including digital twins. The leading cities in this ranking have all rolled out services that are effectively harnessing data and connectivity to improve citizen experiences.

“Shanghai has taken a joined-up approach to data; building not only a robust and all-encompassing data platform but also the connectivity to underpin every aspect of this. This joined-up approach is the biggest takeaway for rival cities wanting to emulate Shanghai’s achievements, and should be a part of any smart city initiative to ensure success,“ explained research co-author Nick Maynard.