ZIP 27302 vs ZIP 27243

This side-by-side compares ZIP 27302 (Mebane, NC) and ZIP 27243 (Efland, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 27302 has a population of 26,412 at 87 people per square mile, while ZIP 27243 has 4,337 at 42 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 27302 reports a median household income of $79,819 against $84,348 in ZIP 27243, with per-capita income of $40,527 vs $40,444. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 35.0% in 27302 and 34.7% in 27243. Poverty rate reads 7.5% vs 4.5%, and unemployment 3.8% vs 0.8% — 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 $312,400 in 27302 versus $298,600 in 27243, with median rent of $1,199 and $858 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 69.4% vs 93.2%. 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.