ZIP 28090 vs ZIP 28150

This side-by-side compares ZIP 28090 (Lawndale, NC) and ZIP 28150 (Shelby, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 28090 has a population of 8,342 at 34 people per square mile, while ZIP 28150 has 28,098 at 101 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 28090 reports a median household income of $57,714 against $55,832 in ZIP 28150, with per-capita income of $30,965 vs $32,658. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.3% in 28090 and 23.7% in 28150. Poverty rate reads 12.2% vs 17.1%, and unemployment 6.6% vs 4.3% — 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 $169,700 in 28090 versus $211,400 in 28150, with median rent of $808 and $873 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.6% vs 69.2%. 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.