Waterbury, CT vs Bridgeport, CT
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Waterbury, CT spends 15% more per resident than Bridgeport, CT: $55,426 against $48,031. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Bridgeport, CT holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 75/100 (grade B) against 41/100 (grade D) for Waterbury, CT — a 34-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Bridgeport, CT reports no outstanding debt per resident in its Census filing, while Waterbury, CT carries $108 per resident. Both cities pour the most per-resident dollars into the same function: education leads in Waterbury, CT at $33,920 per resident and in Bridgeport, CT at $27,902.
They also fund themselves differently: intergovernmental transfers is the largest single revenue source in Waterbury, CT at 100% of total revenue, whereas Bridgeport, CT relies most on other revenue at 5%.
Summary
Waterbury spends 15.4% more per capita than Bridgeport ($7,395/person difference). Bridgeport, CT has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (B, 75/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Sales Tax | $251 | $308 |
| Income Tax | $3 | $15 |
| Intergovernmental | $42,242 | $1,555 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,249 | $0 |
| Other | $2,485 | $3,152 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Fire Protection | $2,439 | $418 |
| Highways & Roads | $0 | $1,022 |
| Education | $33,920 | $27,902 |
| Public Welfare | $1,768 | $345 |
| Health | $173 | $669 |
| Hospitals | $313 | $293 |
| Parks & Recreation | $161 | $547 |
| Housing | $3,627 | $6,831 |
| Sewerage | $74 | $261 |
| Utilities | $869 | $957 |
| Other | $12,083 | $8,786 |
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Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.