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

Kansas City, MO vs Arlington, TX

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

Summary

Kansas City spends 93.9% more per capita than Arlington ($11,050/person difference). Arlington, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Kansas City, MO
Pop. 505,958
C
52/100
Budget Balance1
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency76
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50
City B
Arlington, TX
Pop. 393,469
A
83/100
Budget Balance78
Debt Burden96
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity89
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Kansas City
Arlington
Total Spending
$11.5B
$4.6B
Spending / Capita
$22,820
$11,769
Total Revenue
$675.4M
$23.8B
Revenue / Capita
$1,335
$60,454
Total Debt
$0
$233.8M
Debt / Capita
$0
$594
Population
505,958
393,469
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Kansas City$119
Arlington$160
Highways & Roads
Kansas City$0
Arlington$149
Parks & Recreation
Kansas City$1,309
Arlington$1,352
Health
Kansas City$0
Arlington$219

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

Kansas CityArlington
Sales Tax
$623
$507
Income Tax
$0
$73
Intergovernmental
$7
$25,062
Charges & Fees
$3,794
$2,949
Other
$11,150
$3,897

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

Kansas CityArlington
Fire Protection
$119
$160
Highways & Roads
$0
$149
Public Welfare
$3,018
$826
Health
$0
$219
Hospitals
$1,849
$152
Parks & Recreation
$1,309
$1,352
Housing
$4,681
$2,981
Sewerage
$0
$141
Utilities
$3,123
$1,385
Other
$8,721
$4,404
C
Kansas City, MO
Fiscal Health Score: 52/100
Average fiscal health
A
Arlington, TX
Fiscal Health Score: 83/100
Excellent fiscal health

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