Salem, OR vs Portland, OR
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Portland spends 32.6% more per capita than Salem ($7,716/person difference). Salem, OR has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 68/100).
Fiscal Health Score
B
68/100
Budget Balance77
Debt Burden28
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency85
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
C
63/100
Budget Balance83
Debt Burden7
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency72
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Salem
Portland
Total Spending
$2.8B
$15.3B
Spending / Capita
$15,959
$23,675
Total Revenue
$8.4B
$31.0B
Revenue / Capita
$47,891
$47,970
Total Debt
$179.1M
$1.0B
Debt / Capita
$1,019
$1,574
Population
175,754
646,101
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Salem$185
Portland$1,700
Highways & Roads
Salem$285
Portland$139
Parks & Recreation
Salem$899
Portland$2,477
Health
Salem$311
Portland$0
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
SalemPortland
| Property Tax | $29 | $0 |
| Sales Tax | $301 | $1,695 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $130 |
| Intergovernmental | $5,706 | $8,979 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,510 | $3,883 |
| Other | $5,114 | $7,916 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
SalemPortland
| Fire Protection | $185 | $1,700 |
| Highways & Roads | $285 | $139 |
| Public Welfare | $1,100 | $3,607 |
| Health | $311 | $0 |
| Hospitals | $2,834 | $2,893 |
| Parks & Recreation | $899 | $2,477 |
| Housing | $3,037 | $3,694 |
| Sewerage | $317 | $630 |
| Utilities | $1,581 | $1,845 |
| Other | $5,409 | $6,689 |
B
Salem, OR
Fiscal Health Score: 68/100
Good fiscal health
C
Portland, OR
Fiscal Health Score: 63/100
Average fiscal health