North Charleston, SC vs Charleston, SC
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Charleston, SC outspends North Charleston, SC by a wide margin per resident — $23,793 versus $12,917, a 84% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
North Charleston, SC holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 80/100 (grade A) against 50/100 (grade C) for Charleston, SC — a 30-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Neither city reports outstanding debt per resident in its current Census filing, which removes debt service as a point of difference between them. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: North Charleston, SC leads with fire protection at $1,323 per resident, while Charleston, SC leads with parks and recreation at $3,903.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in North Charleston, SC at 100% of total revenue, whereas Charleston, SC relies most on other revenue at 82%.
Summary
Charleston spends 45.7% more per capita than North Charleston ($10,876/person difference). North Charleston, SC has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 80/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $231 | $1,723 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $2,502 |
| Intergovernmental | $23,753 | $646 |
| Other | $632 | $4,635 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $1,323 | $1,726 |
| Highways & Roads | $867 | $1,309 |
| Public Welfare | $0 | $902 |
| Health | $0 | $2,099 |
| Hospitals | $194 | $0 |
| Parks & Recreation | $987 | $3,903 |
| Housing | $3,880 | $5,779 |
| Sewerage | $274 | $191 |
| Utilities | $650 | $2,955 |
| General Admin | $0 | $625 |
| Other | $4,742 | $4,305 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.