Long Beach, CA vs Kansas City, MO
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Long Beach, CA spends 50% more per resident than Kansas City, MO: $34,250 against $22,820. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Long Beach, CA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 67/100 (grade B) against 52/100 (grade C) for Kansas City, MO — a 15-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 Kansas City, MO at $1,309.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on other revenue — 12% of total revenue in Long Beach, CA and 835% in Kansas City, MO.
Summary
Long Beach spends 50.1% more per capita than Kansas City ($11,430/person difference). Long Beach, CA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 67/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $36 | $623 |
| Income Tax | $1,760 | $0 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,688 | $7 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,424 | $3,794 |
| Other | $8,836 | $11,150 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $0 | $119 |
| Public Welfare | $1,317 | $3,018 |
| Health | $477 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $2,751 | $1,849 |
| Parks & Recreation | $698 | $1,309 |
| Housing | $5,782 | $4,681 |
| Sewerage | $86 | $0 |
| Utilities | $3,889 | $3,123 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,718 | $0 |
| Other | $16,533 | $8,721 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.