ZIP 28594 vs ZIP 28584

This side-by-side compares ZIP 28594 (Emerald Isle, NC) and ZIP 28584 (Swansboro, NC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 28594 has a population of 3,655 at 247 people per square mile, while ZIP 28584 has 11,396 at 75 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 28594 reports a median household income of $89,773 against $87,414 in ZIP 28584, with per-capita income of $70,224 vs $47,843. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 57.1% in 28594 and 33.4% in 28584. Poverty rate reads 4.9% vs 9.7%, and unemployment 1.1% vs 4.6% — 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 $603,700 in 28594 versus $339,200 in 28584, with median rent of $1,704 and $1,274 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 85.6% vs 80.1%. 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.