ZIP 28269 vs ZIP 27610

This side-by-side compares ZIP 28269 (Charlotte, NC) and ZIP 27610 (Raleigh, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 28269 has a population of 71,048 at 900 people per square mile, while ZIP 27610 has 65,648 at 593 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 28269 reports a median household income of $81,517 against $67,932 in ZIP 27610, with per-capita income of $42,645 vs $31,863. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 45.6% in 28269 and 28.9% in 27610. Poverty rate reads 8.8% vs 15.7%, and unemployment 2.3% vs 6.7% — 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 $341,700 in 28269 versus $293,000 in 27610, with median rent of $1,710 and $1,449 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 60.6% vs 60.0%. 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.