ZIP 05076 vs ZIP 05086

This side-by-side compares ZIP 05076 (Topsham, VT) and ZIP 05086 (West Topsham, VT) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 05076 has a population of 412 at 6 people per square mile, while ZIP 05086 has 793 at 13 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 05076 reports a median household income of $103,250 against $71,000 in ZIP 05086, with per-capita income of $39,803 vs $47,599. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 32.1% in 05076 and 15.7% in 05086. Poverty rate reads 19.0% vs 16.7%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 0.0% — 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 $221,400 in 05076 versus $193,400 in 05086, with median rent of $1,375 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 90.1% vs 91.2%. 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.