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

Summerville, SC vs Columbia, SC

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

Summary

Columbia spends 50.0% more per capita than Summerville ($9,950/person difference). Summerville, SC has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 67/100).

Fiscal Health Score

City A
Summerville, SC
Pop. 50,839
B
67/100
Budget Balance49
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency100
Revenue Diversity0
Trend Direction50
City B
Columbia, SC
Pop. 136,754
B
65/100
Budget Balance100
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency62
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50

Key Metrics

Metric
Summerville
Columbia
Total Spending
$505.6M
$2.7B
Spending / Capita
$9,946
$19,896
Total Revenue
$253.7M
$8.8B
Revenue / Capita
$4,990
$64,353
Total Debt
$0
$190.0M
Debt / Capita
$0
$1,389
Population
50,839
136,754
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0

Per Capita Spending by Department

Fire Protection
Summerville$152
Columbia$467
Highways & Roads
Summerville$527
Columbia$454
Parks & Recreation
Summerville$631
Columbia$1,265

Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)

SummervilleColumbia
Sales Tax
$92
$623
Income Tax
$0
$42
Intergovernmental
$4,202
$6,842
Charges & Fees
$2,363
$8,276
Other
$971
$6,537

Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)

SummervilleColumbia
Fire Protection
$152
$467
Highways & Roads
$527
$454
Public Welfare
$0
$433
Hospitals
$0
$1,042
Parks & Recreation
$631
$1,265
Housing
$2,315
$3,604
Sewerage
$153
$141
Utilities
$2,819
$4,665
Other
$3,350
$7,824
B
Summerville, SC
Fiscal Health Score: 67/100
Good fiscal health
B
Columbia, SC
Fiscal Health Score: 65/100
Good fiscal health

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