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Data from U.S. Census Bureau · 2026 · Methodology
CitySpend

San Diego, CA vs San Francisco, CA

Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)

Summary

San Francisco spends 76.5% more per capita than San Diego ($140,825/person difference). San Diego, CA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 53/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
San Diego, CA
Pop. 1,383,987
C
53/100
Budget Balance14
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity96
Trend Direction50
City B
San Francisco, CA
Pop. 851,036
D
48/100
Budget Balance70
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
San Diego
San Francisco
Total Spending
$59.9B
$156.7B
Spending / Capita
$43,306
$184,131
Total Revenue
$13.4B
$232.3B
Revenue / Capita
$9,662
$272,907
Total Debt
$0
$1.7B
Debt / Capita
$0
$2,031
Population
1,383,987
851,036
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
San Diego$3,335
San Francisco$3,351
Fire Protection
San Diego$1,278
San Francisco$2,281
Highways & Roads
San Diego$1,408
San Francisco$0
Parks & Recreation
San Diego$436
San Francisco$4,119
Education
San Diego$2,005
San Francisco$0
Health
San Diego$411
San Francisco$1,911

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

San DiegoSan Francisco
Property Tax
$124
$148
Sales Tax
$63
$3,028
Income Tax
$194
$269
Intergovernmental
$57
$19,762
Charges & Fees
$14
$7,961
Other
$3,801
$18,918

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

San DiegoSan Francisco
Police
$3,335
$3,351
Fire Protection
$1,278
$2,281
Highways & Roads
$1,408
$0
Education
$2,005
$0
Public Welfare
$700
$2,203
Health
$411
$1,911
Hospitals
$0
$6,939
Parks & Recreation
$436
$4,119
Housing
$4,476
$9,315
Sewerage
$43
$1,423
Utilities
$11,704
$21,190
Interest on Debt
$0
$22,798
General Admin
$0
$14,899
Other
$17,509
$93,702
C
San Diego, CA
Fiscal Health Score: 53/100
Average fiscal health
D
San Francisco, CA
Fiscal Health Score: 48/100
Below average fiscal health

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