ZIP 04957 vs ZIP 04978

This side-by-side compares ZIP 04957 (Norridgewock, ME) and ZIP 04978 (Smithfield, ME) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 04957 has a population of 4,265 at 20 people per square mile, while ZIP 04978 has 799 at 20 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 04957 reports a median household income of $65,931 against $107,917 in ZIP 04978, with per-capita income of $52,335 vs $55,791. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.7% in 04957 and 34.7% in 04978. Poverty rate reads 19.6% vs 5.8%, and unemployment 4.6% vs 5.3% — 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 $179,100 in 04957 versus $242,800 in 04978, with median rent of $1,073 and $1,109 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.0% vs 88.9%. 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.