Greensboro, NC vs Charlotte, NC
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Greensboro, NC spends 22% more per resident than Charlotte, NC: $19,352 against $15,854. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Charlotte, NC edges Greensboro, NC on the Fiscal Health Score by 5 points — 63/100 (grade C) to 58/100 (grade C). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.
On debt, Greensboro, NC carries the lighter load at $1,773 per resident versus $2,690 for Charlotte, NC. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Greensboro, NC at $3,225 per resident and in Charlotte, NC at $1,571.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 12% of total revenue in Greensboro, NC and 10% in Charlotte, NC.
Summary
Greensboro spends 22.1% more per capita than Charlotte ($3,498/person difference). Charlotte, NC has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 63/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $2,502 | $541 |
| Income Tax | $801 | $366 |
| Intergovernmental | $2,640 | $1,859 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,498 | $2,459 |
| Other | $2,691 | $4,866 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $340 | $463 |
| Highways & Roads | $570 | $41 |
| Education | $33 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $1,134 | $672 |
| Health | $329 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $911 | $1,243 |
| Parks & Recreation | $3,225 | $1,571 |
| Housing | $3,186 | $3,944 |
| Sewerage | $207 | $0 |
| Utilities | $2,932 | $2,244 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,328 | $2,226 |
| Other | $5,155 | $3,448 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.