Arlington, TX vs Charlotte, NC
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Charlotte, NC spends 35% more per resident than Arlington, TX: $15,854 against $11,769. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Arlington, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 83/100 (grade A) against 63/100 (grade C) for Charlotte, NC — a 20-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, Arlington, TX carries the lighter load at $594 per resident versus $2,690 for Charlotte, NC. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Arlington, TX at $1,352 per resident and in Charlotte, NC at $1,571.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Arlington, TX at 41% of total revenue, whereas Charlotte, NC relies most on other revenue at 10%.
Summary
Charlotte spends 25.8% more per capita than Arlington ($4,084/person difference). Arlington, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $507 | $541 |
| Income Tax | $73 | $366 |
| Intergovernmental | $25,062 | $1,859 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,949 | $2,459 |
| Other | $3,897 | $4,866 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $160 | $463 |
| Highways & Roads | $149 | $41 |
| Public Welfare | $826 | $672 |
| Health | $219 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $152 | $1,243 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,352 | $1,571 |
| Housing | $2,981 | $3,944 |
| Sewerage | $141 | $0 |
| Utilities | $1,385 | $2,244 |
| Interest on Debt | $0 | $2,226 |
| Other | $4,404 | $3,448 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.