ZIP 14009 vs ZIP 14082

This side-by-side compares ZIP 14009 (Arcade, NY) and ZIP 14082 (Java Center, NY) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 14009 has a population of 5,672 at 30 people per square mile, while ZIP 14082 has 426 at 17 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 14009 reports a median household income of $62,761 against $93,571 in ZIP 14082, with per-capita income of $52,500 vs $42,640. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 20.8% in 14009 and 35.7% in 14082. Poverty rate reads 9.6% vs 2.7%, and unemployment 3.2% vs 1.8% — 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 $162,000 in 14009 versus $334,200 in 14082, with median rent of $829 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 78.0% vs 94.6%. 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.