Colorado Springs, CO vs El Paso, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
El Paso, TX outspends Colorado Springs, CO by a wide margin per resident — $24,259 versus $13,222, a 83% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
El Paso, TX edges Colorado Springs, CO on the Fiscal Health Score by 2 points — 61/100 (grade C) to 59/100 (grade C). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.
El Paso, TX reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Colorado Springs, CO carries $3,063 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Colorado Springs, CO leads with fire protection at $1,266 per resident, while El Paso, TX leads with police at $1,159.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 13% of total revenue in Colorado Springs, CO and 10% in El Paso, TX.
Summary
El Paso spends 45.5% more per capita than Colorado Springs ($11,037/person difference). El Paso, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 61/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $257 | $65 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $12 |
| Intergovernmental | $6,902 | $690 |
| Charges & Fees | $5,676 | $31 |
| Other | $2,678 | $550 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $0 | $1,159 |
| Fire Protection | $1,266 | $233 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $83 |
| Public Welfare | $575 | $299 |
| Hospitals | $416 | $11 |
| Parks & Recreation | $376 | $151 |
| Housing | $2,713 | $958 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $6 |
| Utilities | $2,566 | $224 |
| Interest on Debt | $190 | $40 |
| General Admin | $0 | $17,951 |
| Other | $5,120 | $3,145 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.