ZIP 21830 vs ZIP 21837

This side-by-side compares ZIP 21830 (Hebron, MD) and ZIP 21837 (Mardela Springs, MD) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 21830 has a population of 4,026 at 50 people per square mile, while ZIP 21837 has 2,614 at 23 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 21830 reports a median household income of $112,991 against $62,880 in ZIP 21837, with per-capita income of $46,824 vs $34,456. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 42.6% in 21830 and 18.0% in 21837. Poverty rate reads 8.0% vs 5.7%, and unemployment 4.9% vs 4.6% — 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 $282,300 in 21830 versus $227,400 in 21837, with median rent of $1,599 and $1,115 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 87.5% vs 87.2%. 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.