ZIP 29412 vs ZIP 29439

This side-by-side compares ZIP 29412 (Charleston, SC) and ZIP 29439 (Folly Beach, SC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 29412 has a population of 35,850 at 353 people per square mile, while ZIP 29439 has 2,399 at 319 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 29412 reports a median household income of $101,509 against $137,396 in ZIP 29439, with per-capita income of $61,854 vs $86,983. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 56.1% in 29412 and 66.8% in 29439. Poverty rate reads 8.0% vs 1.9%, and unemployment 2.6% vs 2.3% — 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 $504,500 in 29412 versus $1,043,200 in 29439, with median rent of $1,881 and $1,844 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 72.7% vs 93.8%. 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.