ZIP 04217 vs ZIP 04286

This side-by-side compares ZIP 04217 (Bethel, ME) and ZIP 04286 (West Bethel, ME) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 04217 has a population of 3,312 at 7 people per square mile, while ZIP 04286 has 47 at 324 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 04217 reports a median household income of $61,125 against — in ZIP 04286, with per-capita income of $51,444 vs —. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 36.9% in 04217 and — in 04286. Poverty rate reads 12.7% vs —, and unemployment 5.1% vs — — 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 $329,700 in 04217 versus — in 04286, with median rent of $880 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 83.1% vs —. 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.