Arlington, TX vs Houston, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Houston spends 18.3% more per capita than Arlington ($2,631/person difference). Both cities share the same Fiscal Health Score.
Fiscal Health Score
A
83/100
Budget Balance78
Debt Burden96
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity89
Trend Direction50
A
83/100
Budget Balance94
Debt Burden72
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Arlington
Houston
Total Spending
$4.6B
$33.1B
Spending / Capita
$11,769
$14,400
Total Revenue
$23.8B
$127.7B
Revenue / Capita
$60,454
$55,600
Total Debt
$233.8M
$2.0B
Debt / Capita
$594
$863
Population
393,469
2,296,253
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Arlington$160
Houston$295
Highways & Roads
Arlington$149
Houston$175
Parks & Recreation
Arlington$1,352
Houston$361
Health
Arlington$219
Houston$210
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
ArlingtonHouston
| Sales Tax | $507 | $181 |
| Income Tax | $73 | $39 |
| Intergovernmental | $25,062 | $33 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,949 | $3,475 |
| Other | $3,897 | $3,960 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
ArlingtonHouston
| Fire Protection | $160 | $295 |
| Highways & Roads | $149 | $175 |
| Public Welfare | $826 | $533 |
| Health | $219 | $210 |
| Hospitals | $152 | $511 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,352 | $361 |
| Housing | $2,981 | $4,288 |
| Sewerage | $141 | $386 |
| Utilities | $1,385 | $1,339 |
| Other | $4,404 | $6,301 |
A
Arlington, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health
A
Houston, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health