Skip to main content
Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

Mesa, AZ vs Tempe, AZ

Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)

Summary

Tempe spends 43.8% more per capita than Mesa ($9,949/person difference). Mesa, AZ has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 90/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Mesa, AZ
Pop. 503,390
A
90/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Tempe, AZ
Pop. 181,005
A
81/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden93
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency45
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Mesa
Tempe
Total Spending
$6.4B
$4.1B
Spending / Capita
$12,768
$22,717
Total Revenue
$18.0B
$10.2B
Revenue / Capita
$35,688
$56,620
Total Debt
$236.3M
$86.4M
Debt / Capita
$469
$477
Population
503,390
181,005
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Mesa$422
Tempe$425
Highways & Roads
Mesa$192
Tempe$603
Parks & Recreation
Mesa$953
Tempe$996
Health
Mesa$147
Tempe$189

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

MesaTempe
Property Tax
$47
$3
Sales Tax
$463
$353
Income Tax
$1,376
$1,152
Intergovernmental
$1,383
$3,872
Charges & Fees
$3,334
$2,554
Other
$2,253
$3,054

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

MesaTempe
Fire Protection
$422
$425
Highways & Roads
$192
$603
Public Welfare
$829
$985
Health
$147
$189
Hospitals
$537
$865
Parks & Recreation
$953
$996
Housing
$4,190
$6,386
Sewerage
$38
$577
Utilities
$2,376
$2,702
Interest on Debt
$0
$2,731
Other
$3,082
$6,258
A
Mesa, AZ
Fiscal Health Score: 90/100
Excellent fiscal health
A
Tempe, AZ
Fiscal Health Score: 81/100
Excellent fiscal health

Compare More Cities