Bridgeport, CT vs New Haven, CT
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
New Haven, CT spends 38% more per resident than Bridgeport, CT: $66,510 against $48,031. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Bridgeport, CT holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 54/100 (grade C) for New Haven, CT — a 21-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Neither city reports outstanding debt per resident in its current Census filing, which removes debt service as a point of difference between them. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: education leads in Bridgeport, CT at $27,902 per resident and in New Haven, CT at $33,075.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Bridgeport, CT at 5% of total revenue, whereas New Haven, CT relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 100%.
Summary
New Haven spends 27.8% more per capita than Bridgeport ($18,479/person difference). Bridgeport, CT 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 | $308 | $1,927 |
| Income Tax | $15 | $999 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,555 | $53,739 |
| Other | $3,152 | $431 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $418 | $2,676 |
| Highways & Roads | $1,022 | $0 |
| Education | $27,902 | $33,075 |
| Public Welfare | $345 | $2,189 |
| Health | $669 | $286 |
| Hospitals | $293 | $1,047 |
| Parks & Recreation | $547 | $98 |
| Housing | $6,831 | $3,394 |
| Sewerage | $261 | $71 |
| Utilities | $957 | $967 |
| Other | $8,786 | $22,708 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.