Lafayette, LA vs Baton Rouge, LA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Baton Rouge, LA spends 46% more per resident than Lafayette, LA: $43,886 against $30,028. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Baton Rouge, LA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 44/100 (grade D) for Lafayette, LA — a 31-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Baton Rouge, LA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Lafayette, LA carries $1,334 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Lafayette, LA leads with fire protection at $1,967 per resident, while Baton Rouge, LA leads with health at $2,058.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 10% of total revenue in Lafayette, LA and 9% in Baton Rouge, LA.
Summary
Baton Rouge spends 31.6% more per capita than Lafayette ($13,858/person difference). Baton Rouge, LA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 75/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $1,778 | $488 |
| Income Tax | $1,580 | $2,296 |
| Intergovernmental | $956 | $949 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,527 | $0 |
| Other | $3,792 | $7,610 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $615 | $1,820 |
| Fire Protection | $1,967 | $1,140 |
| Highways & Roads | $355 | $589 |
| Education | $1,758 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $1,573 | $2,691 |
| Health | $851 | $2,058 |
| Hospitals | $1,440 | $4,729 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,923 | $758 |
| Housing | $8,621 | $7,045 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $236 |
| Utilities | $3,202 | $2,413 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,013 | $1,735 |
| General Admin | $0 | $4,492 |
| Other | $6,711 | $14,181 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.