// CITY_ASSESSMENT
How smart is Chicago?
Chicago scores 66% against the UN ISO-aligned smart city framework in 2026 — ranked #58 of 386 cities assessed, with every finding traceable to a public source.
Smart score
66%
Rank
#58 / 386
Criteria present
36 / 86
Evidence coverage
90.7%
Chicago's smart city score by area
9 present · 6 partial · 0 absent
6 present · 4 partial · 0 absent · 2 not assessed
3 present · 8 partial · 0 absent · 2 not assessed
4 present · 5 partial · 0 absent · 2 not assessed
5 present · 7 partial · 0 absent · 1 not assessed
6 present · 2 partial · 0 absent
3 present · 10 partial · 0 absent · 1 not assessed
Where Chicago is strong
- ▸Culture, Tourism & Recreation
- ▸Food Security & Urban Agriculture
- ▸Open Data & Transparency
- ▸Public Transport & Real-Time Information
- ▸Urban Data Platform & Digital Twin
Where the gaps are
- ▸Climate Action & Emissions
- ▸Smart Traffic & Electric Vehicles
- ▸Energy & Smart Grid
Evidence highlights
Open Data & Transparency · High-value datasets published
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) provides GIS and map data, including environmental datasets such as Chicago Area Waterways Water Quality Data, Stormwater Inundation Data, and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO).
https://mwrd.org/gis-and-map-dataOpen Data & Transparency · Programmatic API access
ComEd offers application programming interfaces (APIs) for accessing 5-minute hourly pricing data for its Hourly Pricing program.
https://hourlypricing.comed.com/live-prices/Urban Data Platform & Digital Twin · Live city data dashboard
The City of Chicago has a "Socioeconomic and City Data Comparison Dashboard" that integrates U.S. Census and City of Chicago data, including 911 calls, to analyze demographic and socioeconomic landscapes and service delivery. Additionally, a "City Services …
https://igchicago.org/data-dashboards/socioeconomic-and-city-data-comparison-dashboard/Public Transport & Real-Time Information · Integrated / contactless ticketing
Chicago uses Ventra as its fare system, allowing passengers to pay for CTA and Pace buses with Ventra Cards, disposable Ventra Tickets, contactless bankcards, or mobile wallet apps. The Ventra app also allows purchasing Metra tickets.
https://www.transitchicago.com/ventra/About this assessment
Chicago was assessed against the 86 criteria of the UN ISO-aligned smart city framework on 2026-07-10 by AI agents gathering evidence from official public sources. Each criterion is marked present, partial or absent, and every finding links to where it was found. Scores refresh continuously as cities publish new evidence.