ZIP 08005 vs ZIP 08758

This side-by-side compares ZIP 08005 (Barnegat, NJ) and ZIP 08758 (Waretown, NJ) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 08005 has a population of 22,448 at 184 people per square mile, while ZIP 08758 has 7,043 at 217 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 08005 reports a median household income of $93,584 against $96,900 in ZIP 08758, with per-capita income of $46,923 vs $48,255. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 33.8% in 08005 and 32.3% in 08758. Poverty rate reads 7.1% vs 10.0%, and unemployment 6.3% vs 8.7% — 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 $395,800 in 08005 versus $486,300 in 08758, with median rent of $1,771 and $1,202 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 88.6% vs 87.2%. 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.