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

Kansas City, MO vs Columbia, MO

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

Summary

Kansas City spends 65.9% more per capita than Columbia ($9,062/person difference). Columbia, MO has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 71/100).

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
Columbia, MO
Pop. 126,172
B
71/100
Budget Balance66
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency98
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Kansas City
Columbia
Total Spending
$11.5B
$1.7B
Spending / Capita
$22,820
$13,757
Total Revenue
$675.4M
$3.0B
Revenue / Capita
$1,335
$23,577
Total Debt
$0
$22.0M
Debt / Capita
$0
$175
Population
505,958
126,172
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Kansas City$119
Columbia$355
Parks & Recreation
Kansas City$1,309
Columbia$1,099

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

Kansas CityColumbia
Sales Tax
$623
$668
Income Tax
$0
$2,110
Intergovernmental
$7
$23,577
Charges & Fees
$3,794
$2,293
Other
$11,150
$2,632

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

Kansas CityColumbia
Fire Protection
$119
$355
Public Welfare
$3,018
$901
Hospitals
$1,849
$77
Parks & Recreation
$1,309
$1,099
Housing
$4,681
$1,692
Utilities
$3,123
$3,124
Interest on Debt
$0
$419
Other
$8,721
$6,091
C
Kansas City, MO
Fiscal Health Score: 52/100
Average fiscal health
B
Columbia, MO
Fiscal Health Score: 71/100
Good fiscal health

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