ZIP 08318 vs ZIP 08343

This side-by-side compares ZIP 08318 (Elmer, NJ) and ZIP 08343 (Monroeville, NJ) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 08318 has a population of 12,702 at 62 people per square mile, while ZIP 08343 has 5,030 at 58 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 08318 reports a median household income of $92,558 against $141,842 in ZIP 08343, with per-capita income of $42,911 vs $54,519. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 26.1% in 08318 and 36.5% in 08343. Poverty rate reads 8.7% vs 4.3%, and unemployment 6.4% vs 2.7% — 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 $302,000 in 08318 versus $344,400 in 08343, with median rent of $1,349 and $1,515 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.2% vs 95.2%. 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.