ZIP 26764 vs ZIP 26705

This side-by-side compares ZIP 26764 (Terra Alta, WV) and ZIP 26705 (Aurora, WV) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 26764 has a population of 4,220 at 18 people per square mile, while ZIP 26705 has 1,077 at 7 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 26764 reports a median household income of $61,010 against $40,500 in ZIP 26705, with per-capita income of $29,762 vs $27,326. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 15.2% in 26764 and 15.9% in 26705. Poverty rate reads 22.6% vs 11.2%, and unemployment 6.3% vs 0.0% — 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 $150,500 in 26764 versus $152,100 in 26705, with median rent of $769 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.4% vs 74.3%. 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.