ZIP 27217 vs ZIP 27244

This side-by-side compares ZIP 27217 (Burlington, NC) and ZIP 27244 (Elon, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 27217 has a population of 36,954 at 116 people per square mile, while ZIP 27244 has 14,173 at 108 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 27217 reports a median household income of $51,950 against $75,323 in ZIP 27244, with per-capita income of $25,751 vs $29,917. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 15.5% in 27217 and 34.7% in 27244. Poverty rate reads 21.6% vs 14.3%, and unemployment 7.9% vs 4.8% — 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 $173,200 in 27217 versus $278,000 in 27244, with median rent of $915 and $972 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 60.2% vs 80.8%. 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.