JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville was named the “Best-Run City in Florida” and ranked 18th best-run city in the nation out of 148, according to WalletHub’s 2026 Best- & Worst-Run Cities in America ranking.
The city scored especially well for total budget per capita, placing eighth in that category. Mayor Donna Deegan said the recognition reflects the city’s approach to managing resources.
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“We’re honored to be named the Best Run City in Florida,” she said. “This national recognition confirms what we already knew: Jacksonville is a city on the rise. We manage the city efficiently, spend tax dollars wisely, and invest in priorities that deliver the greatest return for our citizens.”
WalletHub, a personal finance website, compared the quality of public services delivered to residents with each city’s per-capita budget to measure how effectively public funds are managed.
Analysts examined 36 metrics across six service areas — financial stability, education, health, safety, economy and infrastructure and pollution — to develop a “Quality of Services” score and identify the most efficient cities.
WalletHub analysts said that governing larger cities brings an added level of complexity.
“This often means making difficult trade-offs, deciding which services are most essential, which departments should receive more or less funding, and whether taxes need to be adjusted,” WalletHub said.
This ranking comes just 10 days after Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia claimed the city wasted $272.7 million in taxpayer money in the 2025-26 budget, a sharp jump from the $199 million in excessive spending he claimed the previous year.