Boston, MA vs New Bedford, MA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Boston spends 46.9% more per capita than New Bedford ($23,083/person difference). Boston, MA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 56/100).
Fiscal Health Score
C
56/100
Budget Balance25
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
D
49/100
Budget Balance5
Debt Burden89
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Boston
New Bedford
Total Spending
$48.1B
$5.0B
Spending / Capita
$72,299
$49,215
Total Revenue
$20.8B
$2.4B
Revenue / Capita
$31,243
$23,972
Total Debt
$296.3M
$50.9M
Debt / Capita
$445
$506
Population
665,945
100,620
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Boston$1,107
New Bedford$252
Highways & Roads
Boston$594
New Bedford$886
Parks & Recreation
Boston$711
New Bedford$315
Education
Boston$30,742
New Bedford$31,923
Health
Boston$725
New Bedford$255
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
BostonNew Bedford
| Sales Tax | $78 | $123 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $5 |
| Intergovernmental | $5,357 | $7,480 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,784 | $1,982 |
| Other | $4,557 | $4,106 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
BostonNew Bedford
| Fire Protection | $1,107 | $252 |
| Highways & Roads | $594 | $886 |
| Education | $30,742 | $31,923 |
| Public Welfare | $1,110 | $708 |
| Health | $725 | $255 |
| Hospitals | $2,584 | $610 |
| Parks & Recreation | $711 | $315 |
| Housing | $6,614 | $2,315 |
| Sewerage | $355 | $99 |
| Utilities | $3,402 | $887 |
| General Admin | $5,401 | $0 |
| Other | $18,955 | $10,966 |
C
Boston, MA
Fiscal Health Score: 56/100
Average fiscal health
D
New Bedford, MA
Fiscal Health Score: 49/100
Below average fiscal health