Pittsburgh, PA vs Reading, PA

Pittsburgh, PA spends 55% more per resident than Reading, PA: $25,349 against $16,327. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.

Reading, PA holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 86/100 (grade A) against 69/100 (grade B) for Pittsburgh, PA — a 17-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.

Pittsburgh, PA reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Reading, PA carries $87 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Pittsburgh, PA leads with fire protection at $784 per resident, while Reading, PA leads with parks and recreation at $826.

They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Pittsburgh, PA at 14% of total revenue, whereas Reading, PA relies most on other revenue at 28%.