The 2020 Open Cities Index (OCI) marks the fifth year that PSD released its benchmarking study for municipal open data initiatives. Since first releasing the OCI survey in 2015, municipal organizations have made great strides in the open data realm. In recent years, municipal organizations’ open data programs are maturing to include more relevant datasets and collaborating with external organizations to further advance the impact that datasets allow.

These advancements signify the evolving role and increasing importance that open data provides to an organization and its community. The need for open data was especially highlighted this past year as organizations grappled with sharing data related to COVID-19 to their community and external organizations seeking to provide solutions and awareness.

This report provides an overview of the results from the 2020 OCI survey, including a list of North America’s Top 20 Most Open Cities, trends, and insights from survey respondents. It is our intention that the Open Cities Index serves as a tool for municipalities to benchmark their open data program improvements and share best practices with their peers