Using ISO Standards and Maturity Models to Assess Smart City Transformation

Smart city assessment is often shaped by fragmented rankings, heterogeneous indicator systems, and limited attention to how cities improve over time. This paper examines how international smart city standards and maturity models can be brought together to support a more coherent assessment approach for smart, sustainable, and resilient urban development. Drawing on a qualitative, narrative review methodology, the study analyses smart city evaluation frameworks, the ISO 371xx standards, and the logic of maturity-based assessment.The analysis shows that ISO standards offer a shared language for comparability, transparency, interoperability, and evidence-based governance. Standards such as ISO 37120, ISO 37122, and ISO 37123 define common indicators for sustainability, smartness, and resilience. Maturity models add a complementary perspective by helping cities assess capabilities, structure their development over time, and embed continuous improvement. The paper argues that a standards-based maturity approach can help municipalities move beyond static benchmarking and towards more systematic, accountable, and adaptive smart city transformation. These are promising directions, but the harder work - testing this approach with actual municipalities, in messy governance realities - remains ahead.