The smartest cities in the US: connectivity and infrastructure, sustainability and the tech job market determine this
Making cities smarter provides benefits to its residents, not only with more opportunities but also improved well-being. These are the smartest in the US.
Technology is an integral part of modern life which when utilized to its full potential can help make cities smarter providing benefits for their residents. Not only does it help create more economic opportunities but can also improve well-being.
ProptechOS, a real estate technology company, on an annual basis analyzes the 48 largest cities in the US to see which ones are the “smartest.” They are judged according to 16 metrics divided into three categories including green infrastructure, tech infrastructure and connectivity as well as tech job market.
The smartest cities in the US
In ProptechOS’s most recent survey conducted in 2024 Seattle, Washington was found to be the smartest US city, taking the top spot from Austin, Texas which fell to number three on the list. Miami, Florida came in at number two while San Jose and Oakland, California rounded out the top five.
| City | Connectivity & Infrastructure | Green Infrastructure | Tech Job Market | Index Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle | 85.7 | 67.0 | 61.5 | 75.7 |
| Miami | 83.3 | 64.9 | 75.0 | 75.4 |
| Austin | 86.2 | 60.4 | 55.2 | 72.7 |
| San Jose | 78.1 | 66.0 | 62.5 | 71.6 |
| Oakland | 68.5 | 67.0 | 91.7 | 70.8 |
The Emerald City scored high thanks to having 34 AI companies and 13 internet of things (IoT) companies per 100,000 people. Over the past decade Seattle has also seen its tree coverage explode, gaining 13,700 hectares between 2010 and 2020. On the sustainability front, the city has also built the equivalent of ten electric vehicle recharging stations per 100,000 residents over that time.
Despite dropping down in the overall rankings, the capitol of the Lone Star State still has the best smart city infrastructure thanks to its high average broadband download speed of 275.6 compared to 217.14 US average speed. Likewise, Austin is home to 337 AI companies which works out to 35 per 100,000 residents.
The greenest city in the US is Kansas City, which is one of only 30 cities in the US that achieved a “good” air quality rating from IQAir. The city that straddles the border of Kansas and Missouri has one of the highest number of electric vehicle charging points per 100,000 people in the nation.
Furthermore, the City of Fountains has 12,000 acres of parkland and has expanded its tree coverage by 5,730 hectares over a decade. Kansas City authorities announced in 2022 that they planned to plant an additional 10,000 trees within three years.
The nation’s capitol scored an impressive 100 in ProptechOS’s analysis of cities with the best tech job market. With well over 50,000 tech jobs advertised at any one time, that worked out to nearly 795 tech jobs per 100,000 people. There are over 16,000 tech companies located in Washington DC and the average salary for a software engineer is more than double the national average.
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