ZIP 03456 vs ZIP 03602

This side-by-side compares ZIP 03456 (Marlow, NH) and ZIP 03602 (Alstead, NH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 03456 has a population of 742 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 03602 has 2,654 at 18 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 03456 reports a median household income of $110,455 against $70,455 in ZIP 03602, with per-capita income of $42,319 vs $52,282. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 33.4% in 03456 and 26.7% in 03602. Poverty rate reads 8.9% vs 7.3%, and unemployment 0.8% vs 3.1% — 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 $325,400 in 03456 versus $279,400 in 03602, with median rent of $1,154 and $828 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 92.6% vs 80.3%. 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.