ZIP 16242 vs ZIP 16223

This side-by-side compares ZIP 16242 (New Bethlehem, PA) and ZIP 16223 (Distant, PA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 16242 has a population of 4,693 at 20 people per square mile, while ZIP 16223 has 154 at 55 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 16242 reports a median household income of $55,677 against $60,521 in ZIP 16223, with per-capita income of $33,025 vs $40,583. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 16.8% in 16242 and 0.0% in 16223. Poverty rate reads 16.5% vs 7.7%, and unemployment 3.7% vs 0.0% — 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 $134,700 in 16242 versus $83,800 in 16223, with median rent of $693 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 71.9% vs 70.7%. 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.