St. Joseph, MO vs Springfield, MO
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Springfield, MO spends 46% more per resident than St. Joseph, MO: $15,703 against $10,772. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Springfield, MO edges St. Joseph, MO on the Fiscal Health Score by 2 points — 82/100 (grade A) to 80/100 (grade A). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.
Neither city reports outstanding debt per resident in its current Census filing, which removes debt service as a point of difference between them. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in St. Joseph, MO at $1,000 per resident and in Springfield, MO at $2,552.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in St. Joseph, MO at 100% of total revenue, whereas Springfield, MO relies most on other revenue at 11%.
Summary
Springfield spends 31.4% more per capita than St. Joseph ($4,931/person difference). Springfield, MO has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 82/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $30 | $0 |
| Sales Tax | $365 | $827 |
| Income Tax | $876 | $822 |
| Intergovernmental | $14,823 | $1,035 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $3,451 |
| Other | $5,785 | $4,051 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $489 | $68 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $487 |
| Education | $0 | $1,123 |
| Public Welfare | $1,015 | $932 |
| Hospitals | $288 | $311 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,000 | $2,552 |
| Housing | $2,681 | $2,768 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $206 |
| Utilities | $416 | $2,850 |
| Interest on Debt | $804 | $805 |
| Other | $4,079 | $3,601 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.