Arlington, TX vs Oakland, CA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Oakland, CA outspends Arlington, TX by a wide margin per resident — $30,055 versus $11,769, a 155% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
Arlington, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 83/100 (grade A) against 72/100 (grade B) for Oakland, CA — a 11-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Oakland, CA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Arlington, TX carries $594 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Arlington, TX leads with parks and recreation at $1,352 per resident, while Oakland, CA leads with health at $1,016.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 41% of total revenue in Arlington, TX and 100% in Oakland, CA.
Summary
Oakland spends 60.8% more per capita than Arlington ($18,285/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 | $522 |
| Income Tax | $73 | $0 |
| Intergovernmental | $25,062 | $42,277 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,949 | $0 |
| Other | $3,897 | $4,337 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $160 | $1 |
| Highways & Roads | $149 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $826 | $2,426 |
| Health | $219 | $1,016 |
| Hospitals | $152 | $2,498 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,352 | $955 |
| Housing | $2,981 | $7,811 |
| Sewerage | $141 | $1,417 |
| Utilities | $1,385 | $0 |
| Other | $4,404 | $13,929 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.