Charlotte, NC vs Portland, OR
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Portland, OR spends 49% more per resident than Charlotte, NC: $23,675 against $15,854. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
On the CitySpend Fiscal Health Score the two are level: Charlotte, NC and Portland, OR both land at 63/100 (grade C and C respectively), so the deciding factors sit in the underlying six-factor breakdown rather than the rolled-up grade.
On debt, Portland, OR carries the lighter load at $1,574 per resident versus $2,690 for Charlotte, NC. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Charlotte, NC at $1,571 per resident and in Portland, OR at $2,477.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Charlotte, NC at 10% of total revenue, whereas Portland, OR relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 19%.
Summary
Portland spends 33.0% more per capita than Charlotte ($7,821/person difference). Both cities share the same Fiscal Health Score.
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $541 | $1,695 |
| Income Tax | $366 | $130 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,859 | $8,979 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,459 | $3,883 |
| Other | $4,866 | $7,916 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $463 | $1,700 |
| Highways & Roads | $41 | $139 |
| Public Welfare | $672 | $3,607 |
| Hospitals | $1,243 | $2,893 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,571 | $2,477 |
| Housing | $3,944 | $3,694 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $630 |
| Utilities | $2,244 | $1,845 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,226 | $0 |
| Other | $3,448 | $6,689 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.