ZIP 18102 vs ZIP 18101

This side-by-side compares ZIP 18102 (Allentown, PA) and ZIP 18101 (Allentown, PA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 18102 has a population of 49,779 at 6,414 people per square mile, while ZIP 18101 has 3,897 at 4,305 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 18102 reports a median household income of $43,085 against $44,773 in ZIP 18101, with per-capita income of $19,885 vs $28,551. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 11.6% in 18102 and 23.2% in 18101. Poverty rate reads 29.2% vs 22.8%, and unemployment 10.9% vs 14.7% — 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 $163,400 in 18102 versus $171,300 in 18101, with median rent of $1,248 and $1,430 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 32.1% vs 8.3%. 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.