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Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

El Paso, TX vs Houston, TX

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

Summary

El Paso spends 68.5% more per capita than Houston ($9,859/person difference). Houston, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
El Paso, TX
Pop. 677,181
C
61/100
Budget Balance0
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency69
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Houston, TX
Pop. 2,296,253
A
83/100
Budget Balance94
Debt Burden72
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
El Paso
Houston
Total Spending
$16.4B
$33.1B
Spending / Capita
$24,259
$14,400
Total Revenue
$4.8B
$127.7B
Revenue / Capita
$7,115
$55,600
Total Debt
$0
$2.0B
Debt / Capita
$0
$863
Population
677,181
2,296,253
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
El Paso$1,159
Houston$0
Fire Protection
El Paso$233
Houston$295
Highways & Roads
El Paso$83
Houston$175
Parks & Recreation
El Paso$151
Houston$361
Health
El Paso$0
Houston$210

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

El PasoHouston
Sales Tax
$65
$181
Income Tax
$12
$39
Intergovernmental
$690
$33
Charges & Fees
$31
$3,475
Other
$550
$3,960

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

El PasoHouston
Police
$1,159
$0
Fire Protection
$233
$295
Highways & Roads
$83
$175
Public Welfare
$299
$533
Health
$0
$210
Hospitals
$11
$511
Parks & Recreation
$151
$361
Housing
$958
$4,288
Sewerage
$6
$386
Utilities
$224
$1,339
Interest on Debt
$40
$0
General Admin
$17,951
$0
Other
$3,145
$6,301
C
El Paso, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 61/100
Average fiscal health
A
Houston, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health

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