Denver, CO vs Los Angeles, CA

Los Angeles, CA outspends Denver, CO by a wide margin per resident — $85,432 versus $33,582, a 154% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.

Denver, CO edges Los Angeles, CA on the Fiscal Health Score by 4 points — 51/100 (grade C) to 47/100 (grade D). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.

Los Angeles, CA 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 Los Angeles, CA leads with police at $4,111.

They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Denver, CO at 37% of total revenue, whereas Los Angeles, CA relies most on other revenue at 51%.