ZIP 29709 vs ZIP 29741

This side-by-side compares ZIP 29709 (Chesterfield, SC) and ZIP 29741 (Ruby, SC) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 29709 has a population of 6,498 at 26 people per square mile, while ZIP 29741 has 2,082 at 22 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 29709 reports a median household income of $54,784 against $45,000 in ZIP 29741, with per-capita income of $31,517 vs $28,852. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.7% in 29709 and 16.0% in 29741. Poverty rate reads 16.1% vs 17.0%, and unemployment 6.3% vs 9.5% — 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 $144,200 in 29709 versus $117,000 in 29741, with median rent of $829 and $729 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.1% vs 88.0%. 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.