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Government · head to head

mySidewalk vs OpenCities

mySidewalk logo

mySidewalk

Government

Community data dashboards for local government and public health, prewired to federal datasets

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
OpenCities logo

OpenCities

Government

Digital Government Experience Platform

From
$500/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: mySidewalk it produces analysis and presentation rather than operational change, so the value has to be re argued at every renewal against services with more visible outputs.; OpenCities population-based pricing model limits scalability for growing municipalities
  • They diverge on capability: mySidewalk covers Prewired federal datasets, OpenCities covers Website Management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which mySidewalk and OpenCities actually diverge.

Attributes where mySidewalk and OpenCities differ
AttributemySidewalkOpenCities
Starting priceOn request$500/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWebWeb, Mobile
FoundedUnknown2008

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Government).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in mySidewalk

  • Prewired federal datasets
  • Margin of error handling
  • Custom geographies
  • Published dashboards
  • Local data integration
  • Report generation

Only in OpenCities

  • Website Management
  • Digital Forms
  • Search Optimization
  • Accessibility Compliance
  • Analytics
  • Salesforce
  • Microsoft 365
  • Google Analytics

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

mySidewalk

  • A public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadlinenot OpenCities
  • A city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service areanot OpenCities
  • An agency that lost its only analyst who understood American Community Survey margins of errornot OpenCities
  • A council wanting published neighbourhood indicator dashboards residents can browsenot OpenCities

OpenCities

  • Citizen Servicesnot mySidewalk
  • Records Managementnot mySidewalk
  • Public Safetynot mySidewalk
  • Civic Engagementnot mySidewalk

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

mySidewalk

  • It produces analysis and presentation rather than operational change, so the value has to be re argued at every renewal against services with more visible outputs.
  • Budget frequently comes from a grant, which means the subscription is exposed when the grant cycle ends rather than being protected as core infrastructure.
  • The prewired datasets are American, so the platform has effectively no value outside United States federal statistical sources.
  • Analytical depth is bounded by what the platform exposes, so an agency with a genuine analyst will hit the ceiling and move to a statistical environment.
  • Small area estimates remain small area estimates, and presenting them as polished dashboards can lend unwarranted confidence to figures whose error bars overlap.

OpenCities

  • Population-based pricing model limits scalability for growing municipalities
  • No self-hosted or on-premises deployment option
  • Limited code customization without vendor support

Pricing, plan by plan

mySidewalk

On request
  • mySidewalk$undefined/year
    • Quoted annually by agency scope and dataset needs
    • Custom geography and local data integration work priced separately
    • No public price list, though agency contracts are public records

OpenCities

$500/month
  • Government Platform$500/month
    • Website CMS
    • Digital Forms
    • Accessibility

Which should you pick?

Choose mySidewalk if

  • You need prewired federal datasets.
  • You also want margin of error handling.
mySidewalk review

Choose OpenCities if

  • You need website management.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want digital forms.
OpenCities review

Questions people ask

Is mySidewalk or OpenCities better?
Neither clearly leads. mySidewalk starts at On request and OpenCities at $500/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, mySidewalk or OpenCities?
mySidewalk starts at On request and OpenCities at $500/month.
Does mySidewalk or OpenCities run on more platforms?
mySidewalk runs on Web. OpenCities runs on Web, Mobile.
What is mySidewalk best used for?
mySidewalk is most often used for a public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadline, a city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service area, an agency that lost its only analyst who understood american community survey margins of error, a council wanting published neighbourhood indicator dashboards residents can browse. Of those, a public health department producing a community health needs assessment on deadline and a city applying for federal funding that requires demographic and disparity evidence for a service area are not what OpenCities is typically brought in for.
What can mySidewalk do that OpenCities cannot?
mySidewalk covers Prewired federal datasets, Margin of error handling, Custom geographies, Published dashboards. OpenCities covers Website Management, Digital Forms, Search Optimization, Accessibility Compliance.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

mySidewalk: What problem does it actually solve?

Correct use of American Community Survey and federal health data for small geographies, which is difficult and is usually held by one person in an agency.

OpenCities: Does OpenCities work offline?

No, OpenCities is a cloud-based SaaS platform that requires an internet connection. All editing and management is done through web browsers.

Source
mySidewalk: Is it useful outside the United States?

No. Its value is the maintained pipeline into US federal statistical datasets.

OpenCities: What accessibility standards does OpenCities meet?

OpenCities is maintained to comply with WCAG AA requirements, ensuring equitable access to government services and information for all residents.

Source
mySidewalk: Who buys it?

Mostly public health departments and city planning or performance teams, often funded from a grant that requires the evidence it produces.

OpenCities: Can I integrate OpenCities with other government systems?

Yes. OpenCities integrates with Google Analytics, govDelivery for notifications, EngagementHQ for feedback collection, Legistar for meeting management, and Active Directory for intranet workflows.

Source
mySidewalk: Can we see comparable contract values?

Yes. Agency contracts are public records and appear in council and health board agenda materials.

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Related pages

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