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

St. Louis, MO vs Columbia, MO

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

Summary

St. Louis spends 30.3% more per capita than Columbia ($4,169/person difference). St. Louis, MO has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 75/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
St. Louis, MO
Pop. 298,018
B
75/100
Budget Balance54
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency98
Revenue Diversity70
Trend Direction50
City B
Columbia, MO
Pop. 126,172
B
71/100
Budget Balance66
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency98
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
St. Louis
Columbia
Total Spending
$5.3B
$1.7B
Spending / Capita
$17,927
$13,757
Total Revenue
$4.3B
$3.0B
Revenue / Capita
$14,322
$23,577
Total Debt
$0
$22.0M
Debt / Capita
$0
$175
Population
298,018
126,172
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
St. Louis$677
Columbia$355
Highways & Roads
St. Louis$772
Columbia$0
Parks & Recreation
St. Louis$1,053
Columbia$1,099

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

St. LouisColumbia
Property Tax
$58
$0
Sales Tax
$192
$668
Income Tax
$50
$2,110
Intergovernmental
$5,609
$23,577
Charges & Fees
$120
$2,293
Other
$4,382
$2,632

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

St. LouisColumbia
Fire Protection
$677
$355
Highways & Roads
$772
$0
Public Welfare
$1,793
$901
Hospitals
$445
$77
Parks & Recreation
$1,053
$1,099
Housing
$5,667
$1,692
Sewerage
$436
$0
Utilities
$2,457
$3,124
Interest on Debt
$0
$419
Other
$4,627
$6,091
B
St. Louis, MO
Fiscal Health Score: 75/100
Good fiscal health
B
Columbia, MO
Fiscal Health Score: 71/100
Good fiscal health

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