ZIP 03263 vs ZIP 03218

This side-by-side compares ZIP 03263 (Pittsfield, NH) and ZIP 03218 (Barnstead, NH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 03263 has a population of 4,114 at 66 people per square mile, while ZIP 03218 has 960 at 26 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 03263 reports a median household income of $74,318 against $112,500 in ZIP 03218, with per-capita income of $36,509 vs $43,637. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 22.7% in 03263 and 32.5% in 03218. Poverty rate reads 11.3% vs 8.0%, and unemployment 1.4% vs 5.5% — 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 $294,800 in 03263 versus $346,900 in 03218, with median rent of $1,239 and $1,469 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 68.8% vs 90.3%. 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.