ZIP 30238 vs ZIP 30274

This side-by-side compares ZIP 30238 (Jonesboro, GA) and ZIP 30274 (Riverdale, GA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 30238 has a population of 34,713 at 794 people per square mile, while ZIP 30274 has 31,893 at 1,165 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 30238 reports a median household income of $62,185 against $52,209 in ZIP 30274, with per-capita income of $26,234 vs $26,731. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 24.0% in 30238 and 20.2% in 30274. Poverty rate reads 17.7% vs 19.5%, and unemployment 6.6% vs 5.4% — 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 $232,300 in 30238 versus $174,300 in 30274, with median rent of $1,588 and $1,373 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 63.8% vs 48.3%. 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.