Cape Coral, FL vs St. Petersburg, FL
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
St. Petersburg, FL spends 51% more per resident than Cape Coral, FL: $21,836 against $14,436. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
St. Petersburg, FL holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 77/100 (grade B) against 69/100 (grade B) for Cape Coral, FL — a 8-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
St. Petersburg, FL reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Cape Coral, FL carries $2,046 per resident. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: fire protection leads in Cape Coral, FL at $3,232 per resident and in St. Petersburg, FL at $3,795.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Cape Coral, FL at 7% of total revenue, whereas St. Petersburg, FL relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 100%.
Summary
St. Petersburg spends 33.9% more per capita than Cape Coral ($7,400/person difference). St. Petersburg, FL has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 77/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $384 | $1,480 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $2,094 |
| Intergovernmental | $177 | $34,179 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,811 | $2,683 |
| Other | $3,015 | $5,544 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $3,232 | $3,795 |
| Education | $1,446 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $699 | $669 |
| Health | $0 | $308 |
| Hospitals | $15 | $546 |
| Parks & Recreation | $952 | $3,226 |
| Housing | $2,474 | $4,761 |
| Sewerage | $465 | $131 |
| Utilities | $481 | $3,465 |
| Other | $4,672 | $4,935 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.