ZIP 34231 vs ZIP 34242

This side-by-side compares ZIP 34231 (Sarasota, FL) and ZIP 34242 (Sarasota, FL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 34231 has a population of 30,268 at 1,239 people per square mile, while ZIP 34242 has 8,865 at 957 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 34231 reports a median household income of $69,925 against $115,967 in ZIP 34242, with per-capita income of $56,585 vs $124,612. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 38.5% in 34231 and 67.8% in 34242. Poverty rate reads 9.3% vs 6.4%, and unemployment 4.3% vs 3.7% — 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 $386,900 in 34231 versus $1,046,100 in 34242, with median rent of $1,821 and $2,932 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 64.7% vs 90.4%. 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.