ZIP 26443 vs ZIP 26321

This side-by-side compares ZIP 26443 (Troy, WV) and ZIP 26321 (Alum Bridge, WV) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 26443 has a population of 258 at 5 people per square mile, while ZIP 26321 has 354 at 6 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 26443 reports a median household income of $61,953 against $103,967 in ZIP 26321, with per-capita income of $22,643 vs $28,705. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.7% in 26443 and 42.4% in 26321. Poverty rate reads 6.2% vs 9.3%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 4.4% — 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 — in 26443 versus — in 26321, with median rent of — and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 70.8% vs 88.5%. 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.