Against the backdrop of the heating and cooling transition, each city’s approach is not only fundamentally shaped by its local social, economic and geographic characteristics. The scope of each city government in defining actions to decarbonise the heating and cooling sector is also influenced – and oftentimes constrained – by the national and/or regional legal framework. For cities to pursue their own goals and contribute to regional and national ambitions, the legal and policy frameworks shaped by the fossil fuel past must be adapted to enable a sustainable energy future.