Overview
ISO 37122:2019 - Sustainable cities and communities - Indicators for smart cities - defines a comprehensive set of indicators for smart cities, with standardized definitions and methodologies to measure progress in city services, digitalization and quality of life. Designed to be used in conjunction with ISO 37120 (city indicators for services and quality of life), ISO 37122 focuses on smart-city specific metrics and provides guidance on indicator requirements, data sources and interpretation to enable consistent urban performance monitoring and benchmarking.
Key topics and technical requirements
ISO 37122 organizes city indicators across thematic areas and specifies for each indicator:
- Clear definitions and scope (terms and definitions for cities)
- Indicator requirements (what to measure and units)
- Permitted data sources and collection methods
- Guidance on data interpretation for comparison and trend analysis
Representative indicator topics covered include:
- Economy and digital policy: percentage of service contracts with open data policies, survival rate of new businesses, ICT sector employment
- Education and skills: multilingual professional proficiency, digital learning device availability per 1,000 students, number of STEM degrees
- Energy and infrastructure: energy from wastewater and solid waste, share of decentralised electricity, grid storage capacity, smart energy meters, street lighting performance systems, EV charging station density
- Environment and climate: green building compliance, density of real‑time air quality monitoring stations, indoor air quality monitoring in public buildings
The standard includes normative structure (scope, references, terms), indicator definitions, and annexed methodologies which improve data comparability across cities.
Practical applications and target users
ISO 37122 is practical for organizations that plan, measure, implement or evaluate smart-city initiatives:
- City governments and municipal planners use it for benchmarking, progress tracking and target setting
- Smart-city program managers and CIOs for procurement decisions, open-data strategies and digital infrastructure planning
- Sustainability officers and energy managers to monitor decarbonization and smart-grid deployments
- Consultants, researchers and NGOs for comparative analysis, reporting and policy advice
Use cases include performance dashboards, sustainability/ESG reporting, grant and investment applications, and aligning local policies with international best practices for smart-city development.
Related standards
- ISO 37120 (city indicators for services and quality of life) - intended to be used together with ISO 37122 to provide a complete set of urban indicators for sustainable and smart cities.
Keywords: ISO 37122, smart cities indicators, sustainable cities and communities, city indicators, urban data, open data policy, smart energy meters, air quality monitoring, ICT employment, STEM education.
