A citizen-based assessment of European smart cites using a DP2 index

Despite the growing body of research on smart cities, existing studies tend to rely on objective indicators, often overlooking how citizens perceive the balance between key urban dimensions. To fill this gap, the present research analyzes the current development of 56 smart cities in Europe through a multidimensional assessment framework based on the non-compensatory Distance-Pena (DP2) method. While most assessments of smart cities use objective measures to gauge their performance, this research emphasizes citizens' viewpoints by assessing perceptions concerning the infrastructural and technological dimensions of smart cities within five categories, namely health and safety, mobility, activities, opportunities, and governance. The results identify four different types of cities based on their respective levels of structural and technological performances. In some cases, there is equal development on both fronts, while in others, there is unequal development, characterized by a strong presence in either one aspect or another. These patterns generate heterogeneous configurations of perceived smart city performance. The findings provide a descriptive typology of smart cities based on citizen perceptions and offer insights into how different dimensions of urban performance can be evaluated. This study adds to the conceptual knowledge of smart cities and provides practical value for policymakers designing smart city strategies that align with citizen-centric views.