Seattle, WA vs Boston, MA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Boston spends 52.3% more per capita than Seattle ($37,836/person difference). Seattle, WA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 61/100).
Fiscal Health Score
C
61/100
Budget Balance69
Debt Burden50
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency22
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
C
56/100
Budget Balance25
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Seattle
Boston
Total Spending
$25.3B
$48.1B
Spending / Capita
$34,463
$72,299
Total Revenue
$56.5B
$20.8B
Revenue / Capita
$76,958
$31,243
Total Debt
$808.1M
$296.3M
Debt / Capita
$1,100
$445
Population
734,603
665,945
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Seattle$210
Boston$1,107
Highways & Roads
Seattle$0
Boston$594
Parks & Recreation
Seattle$3,923
Boston$711
Education
Seattle$1,461
Boston$30,742
Health
Seattle$1,131
Boston$725
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
SeattleBoston
| Property Tax | $1,831 | $0 |
| Sales Tax | $1,094 | $78 |
| Income Tax | $3,496 | $0 |
| Intergovernmental | $9,846 | $5,357 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,960 | $2,784 |
| Other | $8,544 | $4,557 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
SeattleBoston
| Fire Protection | $210 | $1,107 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $594 |
| Education | $1,461 | $30,742 |
| Public Welfare | $3,439 | $1,110 |
| Health | $1,131 | $725 |
| Hospitals | $1,871 | $2,584 |
| Parks & Recreation | $3,923 | $711 |
| Housing | $3,727 | $6,614 |
| Sewerage | $952 | $355 |
| Utilities | $6,489 | $3,402 |
| General Admin | $0 | $5,401 |
| Other | $11,260 | $18,955 |
C
Seattle, WA
Fiscal Health Score: 61/100
Average fiscal health
C
Boston, MA
Fiscal Health Score: 56/100
Average fiscal health