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

Detroit, MI vs Dallas, TX

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

Summary

Dallas spends 10.8% more per capita than Detroit ($3,762/person difference). Detroit, MI has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 69/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Detroit, MI
Pop. 636,787
B
69/100
Budget Balance70
Debt Burden79
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency38
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Dallas, TX
Pop. 1,300,642
C
57/100
Budget Balance16
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency21
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Detroit
Dallas
Total Spending
$19.8B
$45.3B
Spending / Capita
$31,087
$34,849
Total Revenue
$28.4B
$7.1B
Revenue / Capita
$44,533
$5,474
Total Debt
$493.9M
$0
Debt / Capita
$776
$0
Population
636,787
1,300,642
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
Detroit$0
Dallas$1,519
Fire Protection
Detroit$2,429
Dallas$305
Highways & Roads
Detroit$0
Dallas$201
Parks & Recreation
Detroit$950
Dallas$0
Education
Detroit$0
Dallas$62
Health
Detroit$396
Dallas$0

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

DetroitDallas
Property Tax
$44
$9
Sales Tax
$200
$25
Income Tax
$1,045
$0
Intergovernmental
$291
$1,223
Charges & Fees
$2,228
$0
Other
$6,892
$584

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

DetroitDallas
Police
$0
$1,519
Fire Protection
$2,429
$305
Highways & Roads
$0
$201
Education
$0
$62
Public Welfare
$833
$215
Health
$396
$0
Hospitals
$2,217
$385
Parks & Recreation
$950
$0
Housing
$5,791
$444
Sewerage
$451
$0
Utilities
$2,737
$833
Interest on Debt
$2,068
$0
General Admin
$0
$25,827
Other
$13,216
$5,059
B
Detroit, MI
Fiscal Health Score: 69/100
Good fiscal health
C
Dallas, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 57/100
Average fiscal health

Compare More Cities