Boston, MA vs Los Angeles, CA

Los Angeles, CA spends 18% more per resident than Boston, MA: $85,432 against $72,299. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.

Boston, MA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 56/100 (grade C) against 47/100 (grade D) for Los Angeles, CA — a 9-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.

Los Angeles, CA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Boston, MA carries $445 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Boston, MA leads with education at $30,742 per resident, while Los Angeles, CA leads with police at $4,111.

They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Boston, MA at 17% of total revenue, whereas Los Angeles, CA relies most on other revenue at 51%.