Abstract Cities worldwide face growing pressure to respond to complex environmental, social, and economic challenges. Over the past decades, numerous approaches have emerged under the umbrella concept of the smart city, promoting the use of digital technologies to enhance urban governance and maintain a high quality of life. However, the extent to which smart city initiatives contribute to broader sustainability goals remains contested. This study examines the degree to which smart city strategies incorporate an integrated sustainable-digital transformation perspective in the context of Germany. Using qualitative content analysis, 61 smart city strategy documents from major German cities are systematically analysed. Based on a catalogue of 30 criteria derived from the literature and the empirical material, the strategies are comparatively assessed and grouped into three categories: front runners, middle range, and laggards. Building on this classification, a mixed-methods approach is applied to identify common characteristics of the strategies in the front-runner group. The qualitative policy document analysis indicates that strong alignment with supra-regional policy frameworks, institutionalized citizen participation, and the integration of impact measurement mechanisms are recurring features among these strategies. In addition, an exploratory regression analysis suggests that participation in a national smart city funding program is positively associated with a more integrated sustainable-digital transformation approach, while factors such as population size, economic development, or the political composition of city councils appear not to play a significant role.
Helene M. von Schwichow (Mon,) studied this question.