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

Henderson, NV vs Carson, NV

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

Reviewed by CitySpend Editorial Team · Updated

Carson, NV spends 54% more per resident than Henderson, NV: $24,832 against $16,120. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.

Henderson, NV edges Carson, NV on the Fiscal Health Score by 1 points — 67/100 (grade B) to 66/100 (grade B). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.

Carson, NV reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Henderson, NV carries $642 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Henderson, NV leads with parks and recreation at $1,658 per resident, while Carson, NV leads with fire protection at $2,831.

They also fund themselves differently: charges and fees is the largest single revenue source in Henderson, NV at 24% of total revenue, whereas Carson, NV relies most on other revenue at 34%.

Summary

Carson spends 35.1% more per capita than Henderson ($8,711/person difference). Henderson, NV has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 67/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Henderson, NV
Pop. 318,063
B
67/100
Budget Balance12
Debt Burden92
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Carson, NV
Pop. 58,249
B
66/100
Budget Balance53
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency19
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Henderson
Carson
Total Spending
$5.1B
$1.4B
Spending / Capita
$16,120
$24,832
Total Revenue
$3.8B
$1.6B
Revenue / Capita
$11,983
$27,318
Total Debt
$204.1M
$0
Debt / Capita
$642
$0
Population
318,063
58,249
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
Henderson$842
Carson$1,045
Fire Protection
Henderson$552
Carson$2,831
Highways & Roads
Henderson$436
Carson$337
Parks & Recreation
Henderson$1,658
Carson$1,900
Education
Henderson$0
Carson$23
Health
Henderson$0
Carson$259

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

HendersonCarson
Sales Tax
$357
$225
Income Tax
$0
$1,260
Intergovernmental
$364
$953
Charges & Fees
$2,878
$2,983
Other
$2,633
$9,278

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

HendersonCarson
Police
$842
$1,045
Fire Protection
$552
$2,831
Highways & Roads
$436
$337
Education
$0
$23
Public Welfare
$425
$2,268
Health
$0
$259
Hospitals
$908
$400
Parks & Recreation
$1,658
$1,900
Housing
$3,644
$4,279
Sewerage
$874
$470
Utilities
$2,926
$2,620
Interest on Debt
$0
$322
Other
$3,856
$8,079
B
Henderson, NV
Fiscal Health Score: 67/100
Good fiscal health
B
Carson, NV
Fiscal Health Score: 66/100
Good fiscal health

Compare More Cities

Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.