ZIP 02171 vs ZIP 02122

This side-by-side compares ZIP 02171 (Quincy, MA) and ZIP 02122 (Dorchester, MA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 02171 has a population of 17,711 at 2,788 people per square mile, while ZIP 02122 has 23,479 at 4,455 per square mile. That difference in population size and density alone reshapes how every other metric should be interpreted — a higher-income ZIP with 1,200 residents behaves very differently from one with 45,000.

On income and education, ZIP 02171 reports a median household income of $106,885 against $86,150 in ZIP 02122, with per-capita income of $65,500 vs $45,990. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 53.8% in 02171 and 38.8% in 02122. Poverty rate reads 9.6% vs 12.8%, and unemployment 6.1% vs 8.9% — these four fields alone drive most of the difference in the scorecard grades you will see for each ZIP.

Housing separates these two ZIPs further: median home value sits at $662,900 in 02171 versus $669,900 in 02122, with median rent of $2,388 and $2,209 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 52.1% vs 44.8%. When reading the comparison table below, focus on paired metrics rather than single winners — a ZIP with lower home values and lower income is not strictly "worse" if rent-to-income ratios and commute times land in the same zone. Every value is pulled from the exact same ACS table so the two columns are genuinely comparable.