ZIP 03038 vs ZIP 03079

This side-by-side compares ZIP 03038 (Derry, NH) and ZIP 03079 (Salem, NH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 03038 has a population of 33,269 at 358 people per square mile, while ZIP 03079 has 28,776 at 448 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 03038 reports a median household income of $108,322 against $110,490 in ZIP 03079, with per-capita income of $50,557 vs $58,510. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 36.9% in 03038 and 38.7% in 03079. Poverty rate reads 4.1% vs 5.0%, and unemployment 4.0% vs 2.8% — 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 $430,500 in 03038 versus $473,300 in 03079, with median rent of $1,547 and $1,625 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 69.7% vs 75.6%. 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.