Tulsa, OK vs San Diego, CA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
San Diego, CA outspends Tulsa, OK by a wide margin per resident — $43,306 versus $5,250, a 725% difference. A gap this size usually reflects a structurally different service mix or accounting scope rather than a single line item.
Tulsa, OK edges San Diego, CA on the Fiscal Health Score by 3 points — 56/100 (grade C) to 53/100 (grade C). 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. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Tulsa, OK leads with health at $762 per resident, while San Diego, CA leads with police at $3,335.
Summary
San Diego spends 87.9% more per capita than Tulsa ($38,056/person difference). Tulsa, OK has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 56/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $0 | $124 |
| Sales Tax | $97 | $63 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $194 |
| Intergovernmental | $0 | $57 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $14 |
| Other | $53 | $3,801 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $628 | $3,335 |
| Fire Protection | $196 | $1,278 |
| Highways & Roads | $257 | $1,408 |
| Education | $0 | $2,005 |
| Public Welfare | $86 | $700 |
| Health | $762 | $411 |
| Parks & Recreation | $154 | $436 |
| Housing | $350 | $4,476 |
| Sewerage | $27 | $43 |
| Utilities | $41 | $11,704 |
| Other | $2,748 | $17,509 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.