The management of municipal solid waste (MSW) and meeting the growing energy demands are critical infrastructure challenges in developing economies, particularly in expanding industrial cities. These cities attract substantial labor migration due to diverse employment opportunities, contributing to rapid population growth and a sharp increase in MSW generation—intensifying the need for efficient and sustainable waste management systems. Waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies offer a promising dual-purpose solution by converting waste into usable energy while reducing environmental burden. However, selecting the most appropriate technology requires a context-sensitive, multi-dimensional assessment. This study proposes a hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model that integrates the Best-Worst Method (BWM) and the MARCOS method to assess the sustainability of four WtE alternatives. As a case study, the model is applied to Yazd, one of Iran’s key industrial hubs. Results showed that technical (32.4%) and economic (25.3%) criteria had the highest weights in the sustainability evaluation. Among the technologies, pyrolysis achieved the highest utility score (0.679), followed by gasification (0.653), anaerobic digestion (0.652), and incineration (0.536).The proposed framework provides a practical decision-support tool for policymakers and planners in similarly developing industrial regions.