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

Cleveland, OH vs Columbus, OH

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

Summary

Cleveland spends 22.4% more per capita than Columbus ($4,229/person difference). Cleveland, OH has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 69/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Cleveland, OH
Pop. 370,365
B
69/100
Budget Balance81
Debt Burden36
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency74
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Columbus, OH
Pop. 902,449
C
52/100
Budget Balance32
Debt Burden46
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency94
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Cleveland
Columbus
Total Spending
$8.6B
$17.0B
Spending / Capita
$23,088
$18,858
Total Revenue
$29.6B
$0
Revenue / Capita
$79,979
$0
Total Debt
$464.0M
$1.0B
Debt / Capita
$1,253
$1,145
Population
370,365
902,449
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
Cleveland$134
Columbus$0
Fire Protection
Cleveland$633
Columbus$1,016
Highways & Roads
Cleveland$221
Columbus$224
Parks & Recreation
Cleveland$879
Columbus$2,168
Education
Cleveland$65
Columbus$0

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

ClevelandColumbus
Property Tax
$470
$10
Sales Tax
$230
$234
Income Tax
$404
$1
Intergovernmental
$12,511
$0
Charges & Fees
$8,026
$2,389
Other
$1,801
$5,248

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

ClevelandColumbus
Police
$134
$0
Fire Protection
$633
$1,016
Highways & Roads
$221
$224
Education
$65
$0
Public Welfare
$184
$878
Hospitals
$147
$953
Parks & Recreation
$879
$2,168
Housing
$6,008
$4,303
Sewerage
$250
$1
Utilities
$5,621
$1,719
Other
$8,945
$7,595
B
Cleveland, OH
Fiscal Health Score: 69/100
Good fiscal health
C
Columbus, OH
Fiscal Health Score: 52/100
Average fiscal health

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