Despite the hype around them, aspiring smart city governments need to show residents that they can create, deliver and sustain value for them, the residents (Díaz-Díaz, Muñoz, and Pérez-González 2017; Walravens 2012). This article frames this challenge as a problem in the business models of smart services. Like a firm’s business model, which shows how a firm creates and delivers value for customers and how it captures profits, the concept of a city business model can help city governments articulate how they will produce and deliver public value through smart services (Letaifa 2015). Since there is currently no generally used method to understand smart city business models (Díaz-Díaz, Muñoz, and Pérez-González 2017; Walravens 2012), this article presents a framework for doing so.