ZIP 32131 vs ZIP 32187

This side-by-side compares ZIP 32131 (East Palatka, FL) and ZIP 32187 (San Mateo, FL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 32131 has a population of 4,701 at 54 people per square mile, while ZIP 32187 has 1,713 at 28 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 32131 reports a median household income of $69,416 against $51,982 in ZIP 32187, with per-capita income of $35,731 vs $51,716. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 15.6% in 32131 and 35.3% in 32187. Poverty rate reads 15.9% vs 11.3%, and unemployment 5.2% vs 0.0% — 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 $233,100 in 32131 versus $170,800 in 32187, with median rent of $1,094 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.5% vs 93.6%. 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.