ZIP 25442 vs ZIP 25438

This side-by-side compares ZIP 25442 (Shenandoah Junction, WV) and ZIP 25438 (Ranson, WV) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 25442 has a population of 1,925 at 52 people per square mile, while ZIP 25438 has 6,266 at 273 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 25442 reports a median household income of $111,419 against $81,875 in ZIP 25438, with per-capita income of $49,000 vs $37,143. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 33.6% in 25442 and 17.4% in 25438. Poverty rate reads 5.6% vs 14.4%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 3.3% — 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 $393,600 in 25442 versus $254,400 in 25438, with median rent of $1,116 and $1,087 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 89.2% vs 72.8%. 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.