Long Beach, CA vs Philadelphia, PA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Philadelphia, PA outspends Long Beach, CA by a wide margin per resident — $56,272 versus $34,250, a 64% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
Long Beach, CA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 67/100 (grade B) against 45/100 (grade D) for Philadelphia, PA — a 22-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Long Beach, CA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Philadelphia, PA carries $1,069 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Long Beach, CA leads with parks and recreation at $698 per resident, while Philadelphia, PA leads with fire protection at $7,082.
They also fund themselves differently: other revenue is the largest single revenue source in Long Beach, CA at 12% of total revenue, whereas Philadelphia, PA relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 16%.
Summary
Philadelphia spends 39.1% more per capita than Long Beach ($22,022/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 | $107 |
| Income Tax | $1,760 | $8 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,688 | $6,288 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,424 | $2,790 |
| Other | $8,836 | $4,029 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $0 | $1,505 |
| Fire Protection | $0 | $7,082 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $1,215 |
| Public Welfare | $1,317 | $1,456 |
| Health | $477 | $229 |
| Hospitals | $2,751 | $4,048 |
| Parks & Recreation | $698 | $593 |
| Housing | $5,782 | $4,902 |
| Sewerage | $86 | $325 |
| Utilities | $3,889 | $4,222 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,718 | $3 |
| Other | $16,533 | $30,692 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.