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

Fort Lauderdale, FL vs Tampa, FL

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

Summary

Fort Lauderdale spends 20.9% more per capita than Tampa ($6,409/person difference). Fort Lauderdale, FL has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 55/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Pop. 182,673
C
55/100
Budget Balance92
Debt Burden8
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Tampa, FL
Pop. 388,768
F
33/100
Budget Balance16
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency40
Revenue Diversity32
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Fort Lauderdale
Tampa
Total Spending
$6.8B
$11.9B
Spending / Capita
$37,099
$30,690
Total Revenue
$9.4B
$9.3B
Revenue / Capita
$51,266
$23,941
Total Debt
$216.2M
$924.5M
Debt / Capita
$1,183
$2,378
Population
182,673
388,768
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Fort Lauderdale$7,663
Tampa$7,576
Highways & Roads
Fort Lauderdale$0
Tampa$418
Parks & Recreation
Fort Lauderdale$2,357
Tampa$1,723

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

Fort LauderdaleTampa
Sales Tax
$1,496
$1,180
Income Tax
$1,238
$2,437
Intergovernmental
$1,700
$13,224
Charges & Fees
$9,057
$3,962
Other
$1,118
$4,657

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

Fort LauderdaleTampa
Fire Protection
$7,663
$7,576
Highways & Roads
$0
$418
Public Welfare
$619
$1,507
Hospitals
$518
$703
Parks & Recreation
$2,357
$1,723
Housing
$7,339
$4,778
Sewerage
$1,517
$311
Utilities
$7,411
$4,695
Interest on Debt
$77
$89
Other
$9,599
$8,890
C
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Fiscal Health Score: 55/100
Average fiscal health
F
Tampa, FL
Fiscal Health Score: 33/100
Critical fiscal distress

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