For the fourth time in a row, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg has achieved first place in the annual Smart City Index, which was presented today by the industry association Bitkom. The survey analyses and evaluates how well Germany’s major cities are digitised.

First Mayor Dr Peter Tschentscher: “Hamburg is the number 1 smart city in Germany for the fourth time in a row. The renewed award from the industry association Bitkom shows the success of the Senate’s digital strategy. Hamburg’s strengths lie, for example, in the provision of fibre-optic and public WLAN networks, in smart traffic control and in the digitalisation of administration. The Smart City Index shows: Hamburg, a Hanseatic city rich in tradition, is well on its way into the future.”

The Smart City Index examines all German cities with at least 100,000 inhabitants. A total of almost 11,000 data points were collected, reviewed and qualified. The index is divided into five thematic areas: Administration, IT and Communication, Energy and Environment, Mobility and Society. The thematic areas comprise 36 indicators, which in turn consist of a total of 133 parameters – from online citizen services to sharing offers and environmental sensors to broadband availability.