ZIP 03036 vs ZIP 03873

This side-by-side compares ZIP 03036 (Chester, NH) and ZIP 03873 (Sandown, NH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 03036 has a population of 4,782 at 71 people per square mile, while ZIP 03873 has 5,711 at 166 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 03036 reports a median household income of $142,212 against $135,040 in ZIP 03873, with per-capita income of $58,505 vs $55,640. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 41.1% in 03036 and 34.1% in 03873. Poverty rate reads 4.0% vs 10.8%, and unemployment 2.9% vs 4.9% — 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 $552,300 in 03036 versus $483,400 in 03873, with median rent of — and $1,893 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 97.7% vs 82.5%. 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.