Madison, WI vs Oshkosh, WI
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Madison, WI spends 52% more per resident than Oshkosh, WI: $21,859 against $14,411. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Oshkosh, WI edges Madison, WI on the Fiscal Health Score by 1 points — 88/100 (grade A) to 87/100 (grade A). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.
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 Oshkosh, WI at $1,346.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 19% of total revenue in Madison, WI and 17% in Oshkosh, WI.
Summary
Madison spends 51.7% more per capita than Oshkosh ($7,448/person difference). Oshkosh, WI has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 88/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $770 | $1,987 |
| Sales Tax | $1,178 | $107 |
| Income Tax | $32 | $154 |
| Intergovernmental | $7,913 | $14,094 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,755 | $2,241 |
| Other | $2,381 | $3,339 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $264 | $173 |
| Highways & Roads | $47 | $127 |
| Education | $0 | $56 |
| Public Welfare | $1,769 | $1,718 |
| Health | $744 | $601 |
| Hospitals | $1,664 | $113 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,572 | $1,346 |
| Housing | $3,100 | $2,296 |
| Sewerage | $166 | $0 |
| Utilities | $3,406 | $1,997 |
| Interest on Debt | $2,451 | $1,027 |
| Other | $6,676 | $4,956 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.