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

Seattle, WA vs Columbus, OH

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

Summary

Seattle spends 82.7% more per capita than Columbus ($15,604/person difference). Seattle, WA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 61/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Seattle, WA
Pop. 734,603
C
61/100
Budget Balance69
Debt Burden50
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency22
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
City B
Columbus, OH
Pop. 902,449
C
52/100
Budget Balance32
Debt Burden46
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency94
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Seattle
Columbus
Total Spending
$25.3B
$17.0B
Spending / Capita
$34,463
$18,858
Total Revenue
$56.5B
$0
Revenue / Capita
$76,958
$0
Total Debt
$808.1M
$1.0B
Debt / Capita
$1,100
$1,145
Population
734,603
902,449
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Seattle$210
Columbus$1,016
Highways & Roads
Seattle$0
Columbus$224
Parks & Recreation
Seattle$3,923
Columbus$2,168
Education
Seattle$1,461
Columbus$0
Health
Seattle$1,131
Columbus$0

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

SeattleColumbus
Property Tax
$1,831
$10
Sales Tax
$1,094
$234
Income Tax
$3,496
$1
Intergovernmental
$9,846
$0
Charges & Fees
$3,960
$2,389
Other
$8,544
$5,248

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

SeattleColumbus
Fire Protection
$210
$1,016
Highways & Roads
$0
$224
Education
$1,461
$0
Public Welfare
$3,439
$878
Health
$1,131
$0
Hospitals
$1,871
$953
Parks & Recreation
$3,923
$2,168
Housing
$3,727
$4,303
Sewerage
$952
$1
Utilities
$6,489
$1,719
Other
$11,260
$7,595
C
Seattle, WA
Fiscal Health Score: 61/100
Average fiscal health
C
Columbus, OH
Fiscal Health Score: 52/100
Average fiscal health

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