Long Beach, CA vs Anaheim, CA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Long Beach, CA spends 46% more per resident than Anaheim, CA: $34,250 against $23,533. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Anaheim, CA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 78/100 (grade B) against 67/100 (grade B) for Long Beach, CA — a 11-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Neither city reports outstanding debt per resident in its current Census filing, which removes debt service as a point of difference between them. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Long Beach, CA at $698 per resident and in Anaheim, CA at $2,078.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 12% of total revenue in Long Beach, CA and 5% in Anaheim, CA.
Summary
Long Beach spends 45.5% more per capita than Anaheim ($10,717/person difference). Anaheim, CA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 78/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $36 | $1,788 |
| Income Tax | $1,760 | $2,380 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,688 | $1,297 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,424 | $2,764 |
| Other | $8,836 | $5,232 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $0 | $254 |
| Public Welfare | $1,317 | $813 |
| Health | $477 | $358 |
| Hospitals | $2,751 | $4,753 |
| Parks & Recreation | $698 | $2,078 |
| Housing | $5,782 | $5,592 |
| Sewerage | $86 | $726 |
| Utilities | $3,889 | $3,943 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,718 | $0 |
| Other | $16,533 | $5,014 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.