Oklahoma City, OK vs Memphis, TN
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Memphis, TN spends 22% more per resident than Oklahoma City, OK: $22,111 against $18,074. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
On the CitySpend Fiscal Health Score the two are level: Oklahoma City, OK and Memphis, TN both land at 65/100 (grade B and B respectively), so the deciding factors sit in the underlying six-factor breakdown rather than the rolled-up grade.
On debt, Memphis, TN carries the lighter load at $303 per resident versus $3,520 for Oklahoma City, OK. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Oklahoma City, OK at $2,014 per resident and in Memphis, TN at $1,397.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 19% of total revenue in Oklahoma City, OK and 100% in Memphis, TN.
Summary
Memphis spends 18.3% more per capita than Oklahoma City ($4,037/person difference). Both cities share the same Fiscal Health Score.
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $0 | $10 |
| Sales Tax | $763 | $496 |
| Income Tax | $1,037 | $1,218 |
| Intergovernmental | $6,852 | $34,065 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,256 | $2,077 |
| Other | $1,836 | $3,994 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $513 | $469 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $277 |
| Public Welfare | $1,525 | $630 |
| Health | $5 | $391 |
| Hospitals | $2,044 | $1,677 |
| Parks & Recreation | $2,014 | $1,397 |
| Housing | $2,857 | $4,683 |
| Utilities | $4,523 | $2,578 |
| Interest on Debt | $707 | $1,158 |
| Other | $3,886 | $8,850 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.