Portland, OR vs Baltimore, MD

Baltimore, MD outspends Portland, OR by a wide margin per resident — $67,935 versus $23,675, a 187% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.

Baltimore, MD edges Portland, OR on the Fiscal Health Score by 7 points — 70/100 (grade B) to 63/100 (grade C). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.

Baltimore, MD reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Portland, OR carries $1,574 per resident. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Portland, OR leads with parks and recreation at $2,477 per resident, while Baltimore, MD leads with education at $35,510.

On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 19% of total revenue in Portland, OR and 7% in Baltimore, MD.