Denver, CO vs El Paso, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Denver, CO spends 38% more per resident than El Paso, TX: $33,582 against $24,259. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
El Paso, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 61/100 (grade C) against 51/100 (grade C) for Denver, CO — a 10-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
El Paso, TX reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Denver, CO carries $5,126 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Denver, CO leads with parks and recreation at $3,319 per resident, while El Paso, TX leads with police at $1,159.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 37% of total revenue in Denver, CO and 10% in El Paso, TX.
Summary
Denver spends 38.4% more per capita than El Paso ($9,323/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 | $2,070 | $65 |
| Income Tax | $236 | $12 |
| Intergovernmental | $44,661 | $690 |
| Charges & Fees | $5,207 | $31 |
| Other | $10,100 | $550 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $2,455 | $1,159 |
| Fire Protection | $1,668 | $233 |
| Highways & Roads | $475 | $83 |
| Education | $821 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $764 | $299 |
| Health | $693 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $2,855 | $11 |
| Parks & Recreation | $3,319 | $151 |
| Housing | $3,565 | $958 |
| Sewerage | $293 | $6 |
| Utilities | $4,292 | $224 |
| Interest on Debt | $7 | $40 |
| General Admin | $364 | $17,951 |
| Other | $12,011 | $3,145 |
Compare More Cities
Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.