ZIP 08879 vs ZIP 08859

This side-by-side compares ZIP 08879 (South Amboy, NJ) and ZIP 08859 (Parlin, NJ) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 08879 has a population of 23,537 at 1,260 people per square mile, while ZIP 08859 has 21,526 at 1,844 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 08879 reports a median household income of $92,786 against $99,882 in ZIP 08859, with per-capita income of $43,799 vs $45,141. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 28.9% in 08879 and 37.6% in 08859. Poverty rate reads 8.7% vs 7.0%, and unemployment 7.6% vs 7.2% — 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 $389,800 in 08879 versus $445,800 in 08859, with median rent of $1,660 and $1,654 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 62.9% vs 58.4%. 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.