In the context of smart city development, the intelligent transformation of communities, as a critical juncture for the interaction between urban information and residents’ daily lives, has become increasingly significant. Based on 251 relevant articles from the CNKI database spanning 2012 to 2024, bibliometric analysis was employed and CiteSpace6.3.R1 was used to visualize keyword co-occurrences, clustering and emerging trends, thereby the research hotspots and frontiers in smart community development was identified. The findings show that future advancements should focus on five key areas, such as information security, human-centered design, smart elderly care services, sustainability and resilience and equitable public service provision.