Baton Rouge, LA vs Lafayette, LA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Baton Rouge, LA spends 46% more per resident than Lafayette, LA: $43,886 against $30,028. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Baton Rouge, LA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 44/100 (grade D) for Lafayette, LA — a 31-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Baton Rouge, LA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Lafayette, LA carries $1,334 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Baton Rouge, LA leads with health at $2,058 per resident, while Lafayette, LA leads with fire protection at $1,967.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 9% of total revenue in Baton Rouge, LA and 10% in Lafayette, LA.
Summary
Baton Rouge spends 46.2% more per capita than Lafayette ($13,858/person difference). Baton Rouge, LA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 75/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $488 | $1,778 |
| Income Tax | $2,296 | $1,580 |
| Intergovernmental | $949 | $956 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $2,527 |
| Other | $7,610 | $3,792 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $1,820 | $615 |
| Fire Protection | $1,140 | $1,967 |
| Highways & Roads | $589 | $355 |
| Education | $0 | $1,758 |
| Public Welfare | $2,691 | $1,573 |
| Health | $2,058 | $851 |
| Hospitals | $4,729 | $1,440 |
| Parks & Recreation | $758 | $1,923 |
| Housing | $7,045 | $8,621 |
| Sewerage | $236 | $0 |
| Utilities | $2,413 | $3,202 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,735 | $1,013 |
| General Admin | $4,492 | $0 |
| Other | $14,181 | $6,711 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.