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

Aurora, CO vs Lakewood, CO

Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)

Summary

Aurora spends 69.0% more per capita than Lakewood ($7,104/person difference). Aurora, CO has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 66/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Aurora, CO
Pop. 387,349
B
66/100
Budget Balance84
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Lakewood, CO
Pop. 156,149
C
56/100
Budget Balance5
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Aurora
Lakewood
Total Spending
$6.7B
$1.6B
Spending / Capita
$17,400
$10,295
Total Revenue
$8.4B
$199.2M
Revenue / Capita
$21,624
$1,276
Total Debt
$1.6B
$182K
Debt / Capita
$4,017
$1
Population
387,349
156,149
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Aurora$785
Lakewood$205
Parks & Recreation
Aurora$1,299
Lakewood$2,250
Health
Aurora$185
Lakewood$0

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

AuroraLakewood
Sales Tax
$303
$897
Intergovernmental
$825
$1,276
Charges & Fees
$3,728
$82
Other
$2,042
$2,128

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

AuroraLakewood
Fire Protection
$785
$205
Public Welfare
$1,001
$1,061
Health
$185
$0
Hospitals
$678
$70
Parks & Recreation
$1,299
$2,250
Housing
$3,493
$3,750
Sewerage
$0
$176
Utilities
$1,978
$79
Other
$7,981
$2,705
B
Aurora, CO
Fiscal Health Score: 66/100
Good fiscal health
C
Lakewood, CO
Fiscal Health Score: 56/100
Average fiscal health

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