ZIP 14731 vs ZIP 14171

This side-by-side compares ZIP 14731 (Ellicottville, NY) and ZIP 14171 (West Valley, NY) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 14731 has a population of 1,576 at 13 people per square mile, while ZIP 14171 has 2,077 at 16 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 14731 reports a median household income of $67,583 against $75,625 in ZIP 14171, with per-capita income of $45,190 vs $46,076. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 34.6% in 14731 and 16.7% in 14171. Poverty rate reads 7.8% vs 6.2%, and unemployment 7.2% vs 0.8% — 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 $286,800 in 14731 versus $178,800 in 14171, with median rent of $774 and $643 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 80.9% 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.