ZIP 21632 vs ZIP 21659

This side-by-side compares ZIP 21632 (Federalsburg, MD) and ZIP 21659 (Rhodesdale, MD) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 21632 has a population of 6,353 at 33 people per square mile, while ZIP 21659 has 1,551 at 13 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 21632 reports a median household income of $61,316 against $73,750 in ZIP 21659, with per-capita income of $31,215 vs $31,627. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 11.9% in 21632 and 10.4% in 21659. Poverty rate reads 22.1% vs 10.6%, and unemployment 4.6% vs 0.5% — 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 $216,000 in 21632 versus $259,900 in 21659, with median rent of $1,031 and $892 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 63.1% vs 83.4%. 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.