ZIP 29526 vs ZIP 29579

This side-by-side compares ZIP 29526 (Conway, SC) and ZIP 29579 (Myrtle Beach, SC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 29526 has a population of 39,033 at 82 people per square mile, while ZIP 29579 has 32,180 at 284 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 29526 reports a median household income of $68,825 against $79,644 in ZIP 29579, with per-capita income of $31,811 vs $40,354. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 21.0% in 29526 and 37.1% in 29579. Poverty rate reads 16.4% vs 11.2%, and unemployment 6.5% vs 4.9% — 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 $253,100 in 29526 versus $353,600 in 29579, with median rent of $1,056 and $1,617 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.2% vs 75.6%. 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.