Houston, TX vs Oklahoma City, OK
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Oklahoma City, OK spends 26% more per resident than Houston, TX: $18,074 against $14,400. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Houston, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 83/100 (grade A) against 65/100 (grade B) for Oklahoma City, OK — a 18-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, Houston, TX carries the lighter load at $863 per resident versus $3,520 for Oklahoma City, OK. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Houston, TX at $361 per resident and in Oklahoma City, OK at $2,014.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Houston, TX at 7% of total revenue, whereas Oklahoma City, OK relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 19%.
Summary
Oklahoma City spends 20.3% more per capita than Houston ($3,674/person difference). Houston, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $181 | $763 |
| Income Tax | $39 | $1,037 |
| Intergovernmental | $33 | $6,852 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,475 | $3,256 |
| Other | $3,960 | $1,836 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $295 | $513 |
| Highways & Roads | $175 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $533 | $1,525 |
| Health | $210 | $5 |
| Hospitals | $511 | $2,044 |
| Parks & Recreation | $361 | $2,014 |
| Housing | $4,288 | $2,857 |
| Sewerage | $386 | $0 |
| Utilities | $1,339 | $4,523 |
| Interest on Debt | $0 | $707 |
| Other | $6,301 | $3,886 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.