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

Seattle, WA vs New York, NY

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

Summary

New York spends 73.3% more per capita than Seattle ($94,657/person difference). New York, NY has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 64/100).

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
New York, NY
Pop. 8,622,467
C
64/100
Budget Balance55
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency0
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Seattle
New York
Total Spending
$25.3B
$1113.3B
Spending / Capita
$34,463
$129,119
Total Revenue
$56.5B
$1271.6B
Revenue / Capita
$76,958
$147,477
Total Debt
$808.1M
$4.0B
Debt / Capita
$1,100
$462
Population
734,603
8,622,467
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Police
Seattle$0
New York$1,512
Fire Protection
Seattle$210
New York$11,050
Highways & Roads
Seattle$0
New York$221
Parks & Recreation
Seattle$3,923
New York$868
Education
Seattle$1,461
New York$37,892
Health
Seattle$1,131
New York$417

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

SeattleNew York
Property Tax
$1,831
$5
Sales Tax
$1,094
$399
Income Tax
$3,496
$19
Intergovernmental
$9,846
$20,520
Charges & Fees
$3,960
$1,835
Other
$8,544
$3,593

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

SeattleNew York
Police
$0
$1,512
Fire Protection
$210
$11,050
Highways & Roads
$0
$221
Education
$1,461
$37,892
Public Welfare
$3,439
$1,116
Health
$1,131
$417
Hospitals
$1,871
$6,467
Parks & Recreation
$3,923
$868
Housing
$3,727
$7,137
Sewerage
$952
$315
Utilities
$6,489
$13,371
Interest on Debt
$0
$11,706
General Admin
$0
$11,668
Other
$11,260
$25,380
C
Seattle, WA
Fiscal Health Score: 61/100
Average fiscal health
C
New York, NY
Fiscal Health Score: 64/100
Average fiscal health

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