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Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

Costa Mesa, CA

Population: 111,490 (2022) · Mid-Size Cities (100K-250K)

C
50/100

Average fiscal health, some areas of concern

Score Breakdown

Budget Balance & Reserves (25%)50/100
Debt Burden (20%)50/100
Pension Funding (20%)50/100
Spending Efficiency (15%)50/100
Revenue Diversity (10%)50/100
Trend Direction (10%)50/100

Compare Cities

See how Costa Mesa stacks up against another city.

Data source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2022). Population from American Community Survey.

Other Cities in California

Los Angeles, CA

Pop. 3.9M

D
Total Spending
$331.6B
Per Capita
$85,432

San Diego, CA

Pop. 1.4M

C
Total Spending
$59.9B
Per Capita
$43,306

San Jose, CA

Pop. 1.0M

A
Total Spending
$18.0B
Per Capita
$17,934

San Francisco, CA

Pop. 851K

D
Total Spending
$156.7B
Per Capita
$184,131

Frequently Asked Questions

Costa Mesa, CA spends $0 per resident, based on total expenditures of $0 for a population of 111,490. The city has a Fiscal Health Score of C (50/100).

Costa Mesa, CA has total expenditures of $0 and total revenue of $0. The city carries $0 in total debt, based on Census Bureau data from 2022.

Costa Mesa, CA employs 0 government workers, of which 0 are full-time. The average government salary is $0, with 0.0 employees per 10,000 residents.

Costa Mesa, CA has a Fiscal Health Score of C (50/100). This score evaluates budget balance, debt burden, pension funding, spending efficiency, revenue diversity, and 3-year fiscal trajectory compared to peer cities of similar population.

Last updated:

For this entity, the underlying data on this page comes from the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances. The breakdown above is the federal record; the paragraphs below add the per-entity context that makes the headline numbers usable for a real decision rather than just a data lookup.

Every number on this page links back to the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.

Practical use of this page is in combination with the comparison and ranking pages elsewhere on the site, which surface the same data for this entity’s peers within U.S. cities, counties, and states. A single-entity reading without peer context can be misleading when an entity is an outlier on one axis but typical on another.