ZIP 28208 vs ZIP 28217

This side-by-side compares ZIP 28208 (Charlotte, NC) and ZIP 28217 (Charlotte, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 28208 has a population of 34,167 at 599 people per square mile, while ZIP 28217 has 24,204 at 631 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 28208 reports a median household income of $55,431 against $64,028 in ZIP 28217, with per-capita income of $34,791 vs $34,767. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 26.8% in 28208 and 37.6% in 28217. Poverty rate reads 19.4% vs 18.3%, and unemployment 7.2% vs 5.8% — 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 $236,300 in 28208 versus $263,300 in 28217, with median rent of $1,244 and $1,594 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 39.4% vs 30.0%. 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.