ZIP 16229 vs ZIP 15656

This side-by-side compares ZIP 16229 (Freeport, PA) and ZIP 15656 (Leechburg, PA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 16229 has a population of 4,997 at 78 people per square mile, while ZIP 15656 has 10,298 at 106 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 16229 reports a median household income of $81,731 against $68,311 in ZIP 15656, with per-capita income of $46,408 vs $37,449. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 29.0% in 16229 and 21.3% in 15656. Poverty rate reads 11.7% vs 10.7%, and unemployment 4.2% vs 3.2% — 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 $206,900 in 16229 versus $162,600 in 15656, with median rent of $786 and $808 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 80.1% vs 79.7%. 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.