Skip to main content
Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

Dallas, TX vs Arlington, TX

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

Summary

Dallas spends 196.1% more per capita than Arlington ($23,080/person difference). Arlington, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Dallas, TX
Pop. 1,300,642
C
57/100
Budget Balance16
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency21
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Arlington, TX
Pop. 393,469
A
83/100
Budget Balance78
Debt Burden96
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity89
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Dallas
Arlington
Total Spending
$45.3B
$4.6B
Spending / Capita
$34,849
$11,769
Total Revenue
$7.1B
$23.8B
Revenue / Capita
$5,474
$60,454
Total Debt
$0
$233.8M
Debt / Capita
$0
$594
Population
1,300,642
393,469
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
Dallas$1,519
Arlington$0
Fire Protection
Dallas$305
Arlington$160
Highways & Roads
Dallas$201
Arlington$149
Parks & Recreation
Dallas$0
Arlington$1,352
Education
Dallas$62
Arlington$0
Health
Dallas$0
Arlington$219

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

DallasArlington
Property Tax
$9
$0
Sales Tax
$25
$507
Income Tax
$0
$73
Intergovernmental
$1,223
$25,062
Charges & Fees
$0
$2,949
Other
$584
$3,897

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

DallasArlington
Police
$1,519
$0
Fire Protection
$305
$160
Highways & Roads
$201
$149
Education
$62
$0
Public Welfare
$215
$826
Health
$0
$219
Hospitals
$385
$152
Parks & Recreation
$0
$1,352
Housing
$444
$2,981
Sewerage
$0
$141
Utilities
$833
$1,385
General Admin
$25,827
$0
Other
$5,059
$4,404
C
Dallas, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 57/100
Average fiscal health
A
Arlington, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health

Compare More Cities