ZIP 02738 vs ZIP 02576

This side-by-side compares ZIP 02738 (Marion, MA) and ZIP 02576 (West Wareham, MA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 02738 has a population of 4,907 at 135 people per square mile, while ZIP 02576 has 3,754 at 149 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 02738 reports a median household income of $143,092 against $63,021 in ZIP 02576, with per-capita income of $96,841 vs $40,991. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 46.7% in 02738 and 20.1% in 02576. Poverty rate reads 9.0% vs 16.9%, and unemployment 5.7% vs 5.3% — 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 $653,500 in 02738 versus $387,200 in 02576, with median rent of $1,176 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 90.8% vs 85.2%. 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.