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Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

New Bedford, MA vs Fall River, MA

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

Summary

New Bedford spends 19.3% more per capita than Fall River ($7,964/person difference). New Bedford, MA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (D, 49/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
New Bedford, MA
Pop. 100,620
D
49/100
Budget Balance5
Debt Burden89
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Fall River, MA
Pop. 93,638
D
41/100
Budget Balance17
Debt Burden32
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
New Bedford
Fall River
Total Spending
$5.0B
$3.9B
Spending / Capita
$49,215
$41,251
Total Revenue
$2.4B
$3.3B
Revenue / Capita
$23,972
$35,606
Total Debt
$50.9M
$54.8M
Debt / Capita
$506
$585
Population
100,620
93,638
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
New Bedford$252
Fall River$265
Highways & Roads
New Bedford$886
Fall River$0
Parks & Recreation
New Bedford$315
Fall River$211
Education
New Bedford$31,923
Fall River$28,175
Health
New Bedford$255
Fall River$178

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

New BedfordFall River
Sales Tax
$123
$165
Income Tax
$5
$0
Intergovernmental
$7,480
$5,430
Charges & Fees
$1,982
$1,459
Other
$4,106
$4,494

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

New BedfordFall River
Fire Protection
$252
$265
Highways & Roads
$886
$0
Education
$31,923
$28,175
Public Welfare
$708
$581
Health
$255
$178
Hospitals
$610
$602
Parks & Recreation
$315
$211
Housing
$2,315
$2,452
Sewerage
$99
$127
Utilities
$887
$1,773
Other
$10,966
$6,887
D
New Bedford, MA
Fiscal Health Score: 49/100
Below average fiscal health
D
Fall River, MA
Fiscal Health Score: 41/100
Below average fiscal health

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