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

Detroit, MI vs San Jose, CA

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

Summary

Detroit spends 73.3% more per capita than San Jose ($13,153/person difference). San Jose, CA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 90/100).

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
San Jose, CA
Pop. 1,001,176
A
90/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency98
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Detroit
San Jose
Total Spending
$19.8B
$18.0B
Spending / Capita
$31,087
$17,934
Total Revenue
$28.4B
$38.1B
Revenue / Capita
$44,533
$38,091
Total Debt
$493.9M
$0
Debt / Capita
$776
$0
Population
636,787
1,001,176
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Detroit$2,429
San Jose$0
Parks & Recreation
Detroit$950
San Jose$1,424
Health
Detroit$396
San Jose$609

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

DetroitSan Jose
Property Tax
$44
$40
Sales Tax
$200
$315
Income Tax
$1,045
$1,935
Intergovernmental
$291
$2,680
Charges & Fees
$2,228
$608
Other
$6,892
$3,519

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

DetroitSan Jose
Fire Protection
$2,429
$0
Public Welfare
$833
$810
Health
$396
$609
Hospitals
$2,217
$1,254
Parks & Recreation
$950
$1,424
Housing
$5,791
$4,897
Sewerage
$451
$161
Utilities
$2,737
$2,533
Interest on Debt
$2,068
$0
Other
$13,216
$6,247
B
Detroit, MI
Fiscal Health Score: 69/100
Good fiscal health
A
San Jose, CA
Fiscal Health Score: 90/100
Excellent fiscal health

Compare More Cities