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

Cape Coral, FL vs Fort Lauderdale, FL

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

Summary

Fort Lauderdale spends 61.1% more per capita than Cape Coral ($22,663/person difference). Cape Coral, FL has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 69/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Cape Coral, FL
Pop. 198,912
B
69/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency94
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Pop. 182,673
C
55/100
Budget Balance92
Debt Burden8
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Cape Coral
Fort Lauderdale
Total Spending
$2.9B
$6.8B
Spending / Capita
$14,436
$37,099
Total Revenue
$8.6B
$9.4B
Revenue / Capita
$43,347
$51,266
Total Debt
$407.1M
$216.2M
Debt / Capita
$2,046
$1,183
Population
198,912
182,673
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Cape Coral$3,232
Fort Lauderdale$7,663
Parks & Recreation
Cape Coral$952
Fort Lauderdale$2,357
Education
Cape Coral$1,446
Fort Lauderdale$0

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

Cape CoralFort Lauderdale
Sales Tax
$384
$1,496
Income Tax
$0
$1,238
Intergovernmental
$177
$1,700
Charges & Fees
$1,811
$9,057
Other
$3,015
$1,118

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

Cape CoralFort Lauderdale
Fire Protection
$3,232
$7,663
Education
$1,446
$0
Public Welfare
$699
$619
Hospitals
$15
$518
Parks & Recreation
$952
$2,357
Housing
$2,474
$7,339
Sewerage
$465
$1,517
Utilities
$481
$7,411
Interest on Debt
$0
$77
Other
$4,672
$9,599
B
Cape Coral, FL
Fiscal Health Score: 69/100
Good fiscal health
C
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Fiscal Health Score: 55/100
Average fiscal health

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