Fort Lauderdale, FL vs St. Petersburg, FL
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Fort Lauderdale, FL outspends St. Petersburg, FL by a wide margin per resident — $37,099 versus $21,836, a 70% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
St. Petersburg, FL holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 77/100 (grade B) against 55/100 (grade C) for Fort Lauderdale, FL — a 22-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
St. Petersburg, FL reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Fort Lauderdale, FL carries $1,183 per resident. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: fire protection leads in Fort Lauderdale, FL at $7,663 per resident and in St. Petersburg, FL at $3,795.
They also fund themselves differently: charges and fees is the largest single revenue source in Fort Lauderdale, FL at 18% of total revenue, whereas St. Petersburg, FL relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 100%.
Summary
Fort Lauderdale spends 69.9% more per capita than St. Petersburg ($15,263/person difference). St. Petersburg, FL has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 77/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $1,496 | $1,480 |
| Income Tax | $1,238 | $2,094 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,700 | $34,179 |
| Charges & Fees | $9,057 | $2,683 |
| Other | $1,118 | $5,544 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $7,663 | $3,795 |
| Public Welfare | $619 | $669 |
| Health | $0 | $308 |
| Hospitals | $518 | $546 |
| Parks & Recreation | $2,357 | $3,226 |
| Housing | $7,339 | $4,761 |
| Sewerage | $1,517 | $131 |
| Utilities | $7,411 | $3,465 |
| Interest on Debt | $77 | $0 |
| Other | $9,599 | $4,935 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.