St. George, UT vs Salt Lake City, UT
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Salt Lake City, UT outspends St. George, UT by a wide margin per resident — $25,335 versus $12,862, a 97% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
St. George, UT holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 62/100 (grade C) against 52/100 (grade C) for Salt Lake City, UT — a 10-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
On debt, St. George, UT carries the lighter load at $14 per resident versus $1,610 for Salt Lake City, UT. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in St. George, UT at $2,093 per resident and in Salt Lake City, UT at $1,879.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in St. George, UT at 100% of total revenue, whereas Salt Lake City, UT relies most on other revenue at 5%.
Summary
Salt Lake City spends 49.2% more per capita than St. George ($12,473/person difference). St. George, UT has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 62/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $2 | $213 |
| Sales Tax | $1,485 | $1,451 |
| Income Tax | $848 | $737 |
| Intergovernmental | $9,539 | $4,455 |
| Charges & Fees | $3,377 | $4,537 |
| Other | $3,654 | $8,729 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $259 | $499 |
| Highways & Roads | $157 | $536 |
| Education | $46 | $90 |
| Public Welfare | $392 | $2,075 |
| Health | $0 | $1,244 |
| Hospitals | $72 | $470 |
| Parks & Recreation | $2,093 | $1,879 |
| Housing | $1,989 | $3,710 |
| Sewerage | $391 | $371 |
| Utilities | $2,612 | $3,955 |
| Interest on Debt | $282 | $43 |
| Other | $4,569 | $10,462 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.