Oakland, CA vs Arlington, TX
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Oakland, CA outspends Arlington, TX by a wide margin per resident — $30,055 versus $11,769, a 155% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
Arlington, TX holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 83/100 (grade A) against 72/100 (grade B) for Oakland, CA — a 11-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Oakland, CA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Arlington, TX carries $594 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Oakland, CA leads with health at $1,016 per resident, while Arlington, TX leads with parks and recreation at $1,352.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 100% of total revenue in Oakland, CA and 41% in Arlington, TX.
Summary
Oakland spends 155.4% more per capita than Arlington ($18,285/person difference). Arlington, TX has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 83/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $522 | $507 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $73 |
| Intergovernmental | $42,277 | $25,062 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $2,949 |
| Other | $4,337 | $3,897 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $1 | $160 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $149 |
| Public Welfare | $2,426 | $826 |
| Health | $1,016 | $219 |
| Hospitals | $2,498 | $152 |
| Parks & Recreation | $955 | $1,352 |
| Housing | $7,811 | $2,981 |
| Sewerage | $1,417 | $141 |
| Utilities | $0 | $1,385 |
| Other | $13,929 | $4,404 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.