ZIP 21034 vs ZIP 21918

This side-by-side compares ZIP 21034 (Darlington, MD) and ZIP 21918 (Conowingo, MD) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 21034 has a population of 3,387 at 52 people per square mile, while ZIP 21918 has 4,284 at 94 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 21034 reports a median household income of $78,047 against $84,587 in ZIP 21918, with per-capita income of $43,178 vs $47,697. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 22.8% in 21034 and 16.1% in 21918. Poverty rate reads 9.7% vs 6.1%, and unemployment 0.4% vs 3.1% — 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 $401,500 in 21034 versus $324,800 in 21918, with median rent of $1,151 and $876 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 89.8% vs 88.6%. 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.