Houston, TX vs Plano, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Plano, TX spends 17% more per resident than Houston, TX: $16,842 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 75/100 (grade B) for Plano, TX — a 8-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, Plano, TX carries the lighter load at $663 per resident versus $863 for Houston, TX. 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 Plano, TX at $1,518.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Houston, TX at 7% of total revenue, whereas Plano, TX relies most on charges and fees at 20%.
Summary
Plano spends 14.5% more per capita than Houston ($2,442/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 | $644 |
| Income Tax | $39 | $731 |
| Intergovernmental | $33 | $2,683 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,475 | $3,976 |
| Other | $3,960 | $3,004 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $295 | $125 |
| Highways & Roads | $175 | $319 |
| Education | $0 | $34 |
| Public Welfare | $533 | $283 |
| Health | $210 | $463 |
| Hospitals | $511 | $194 |
| Parks & Recreation | $361 | $1,518 |
| Housing | $4,288 | $3,356 |
| Sewerage | $386 | $145 |
| Utilities | $1,339 | $4,137 |
| Other | $6,301 | $6,268 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.