Shawnee, KS vs Topeka, KS
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Shawnee spends 33.7% more per capita than Topeka ($4,862/person difference). Topeka, KS has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 87/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $0 | $823 |
| Sales Tax | $366 | $182 |
| Income Tax | $2,215 | $0 |
| Intergovernmental | $2,994 | $3,030 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $6,883 |
| Other | $966 | $4,080 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $2,908 | $0 |
| Fire Protection | $1,248 | $190 |
| Highways & Roads | $10 | $353 |
| Public Welfare | $1,126 | $3,253 |
| Parks & Recreation | $3,095 | $55 |
| Housing | $3,109 | $3,032 |
| Utilities | $2,387 | $3,548 |
| Interest on Debt | $0 | $663 |
| Other | $5,414 | $3,342 |
Compare More Cities
The side-by-side above pulls the the Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances data for both entity A and entity B. What follows is the interpretation — which specific axes carry the most weight for entity A versus entity B, and which differences are large enough to influence a real decision.
Practical use of the comparison: read the data above, then drill into the individual entity A and entity B detail pages for the underlying breakdown. A pairwise comparison answers the relative question; the per-entity pages answer the absolute question.
Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.