ZIP 27921 vs ZIP 27973

This side-by-side compares ZIP 27921 (Camden, NC) and ZIP 27973 (Shawboro, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 27921 has a population of 4,805 at 26 people per square mile, while ZIP 27973 has 1,323 at 14 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 27921 reports a median household income of $94,473 against $86,375 in ZIP 27973, with per-capita income of $43,655 vs $31,778. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 30.9% in 27921 and 22.8% in 27973. Poverty rate reads 4.4% vs 14.9%, and unemployment 5.2% vs 5.1% — 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 $341,000 in 27921 versus $322,200 in 27973, with median rent of $1,241 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 73.5% vs 84.5%. 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.