Lansing, MI vs Ann Arbor, MI
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Lansing, MI spends 41% more per resident than Ann Arbor, MI: $30,923 against $22,006. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Lansing, MI holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 55/100 (grade C) against 46/100 (grade D) for Ann Arbor, MI — a 9-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, Lansing, MI carries the lighter load at $796 per resident versus $2,923 for Ann Arbor, MI. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Lansing, MI leads with fire protection at $3,190 per resident, while Ann Arbor, MI leads with parks and recreation at $1,799.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Lansing, MI at 21% of total revenue, whereas Ann Arbor, MI relies most on other revenue at 17%.
Summary
Lansing spends 40.5% more per capita than Ann Arbor ($8,917/person difference). Lansing, MI has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 55/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $611 | $452 |
| Income Tax | $698 | $378 |
| Intergovernmental | $20,165 | $3,670 |
| Charges & Fees | $4,486 | $2,961 |
| Other | $6,549 | $4,076 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $3,190 | $1,572 |
| Education | $61 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $2,424 | $1,621 |
| Hospitals | $2,917 | $2,532 |
| Parks & Recreation | $2,023 | $1,799 |
| Housing | $4,499 | $2,662 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $511 |
| Utilities | $3,743 | $2,610 |
| Interest on Debt | $0 | $1,056 |
| Other | $12,066 | $7,644 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.