Madison, WI vs Eau Claire, WI
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Madison, WI spends 39% more per resident than Eau Claire, WI: $21,859 against $15,744. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
On the CitySpend Fiscal Health Score the two are level: Madison, WI and Eau Claire, WI both land at 87/100 (grade A and A respectively), so the deciding factors sit in the underlying six-factor breakdown rather than the rolled-up grade.
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 Madison, WI at $1,572 per resident and in Eau Claire, WI at $1,259.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 19% of total revenue in Madison, WI and 27% in Eau Claire, WI.
Summary
Madison spends 38.8% more per capita than Eau Claire ($6,115/person difference). Both cities share the same Fiscal Health Score.
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $770 | $821 |
| Sales Tax | $1,178 | $320 |
| Income Tax | $32 | $125 |
| Intergovernmental | $7,913 | $9,252 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,755 | $1,772 |
| Other | $2,381 | $2,733 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $264 | $403 |
| Highways & Roads | $47 | $84 |
| Education | $0 | $67 |
| Public Welfare | $1,769 | $1,725 |
| Health | $744 | $734 |
| Hospitals | $1,664 | $169 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,572 | $1,259 |
| Housing | $3,100 | $2,608 |
| Sewerage | $166 | $104 |
| Utilities | $3,406 | $1,699 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,451 | $935 |
| Other | $6,676 | $5,957 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.