Summerville, SC vs Mount Pleasant, SC
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Mount Pleasant, SC spends 22% more per resident than Summerville, SC: $12,111 against $9,946. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Mount Pleasant, SC edges Summerville, SC on the Fiscal Health Score by 3 points — 70/100 (grade B) to 67/100 (grade B). At a margin this narrow the grade is close enough that the factor-level detail matters more than the composite.
Summerville, SC reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Mount Pleasant, SC carries $925 per resident. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: parks and recreation leads in Summerville, SC at $631 per resident and in Mount Pleasant, SC at $963.
On the revenue side both lean hardest on intergovernmental transfers — 84% of total revenue in Summerville, SC and 23% in Mount Pleasant, SC.
Summary
Mount Pleasant spends 17.9% more per capita than Summerville ($2,165/person difference). Mount Pleasant, SC has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 70/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $92 | $437 |
| Intergovernmental | $4,202 | $6,212 |
| Charges & Fees | $2,363 | $2,912 |
| Other | $971 | $3,395 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $152 | $399 |
| Highways & Roads | $527 | $0 |
| Public Welfare | $0 | $623 |
| Parks & Recreation | $631 | $963 |
| Housing | $2,315 | $2,205 |
| Sewerage | $153 | $0 |
| Utilities | $2,819 | $3,710 |
| Other | $3,350 | $4,211 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.