ZIP 35096 vs ZIP 35135

This side-by-side compares ZIP 35096 (Lincoln, AL) and ZIP 35135 (Riverside, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 35096 has a population of 7,815 at 38 people per square mile, while ZIP 35135 has 1,812 at 106 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 35096 reports a median household income of $66,913 against $68,681 in ZIP 35135, with per-capita income of $35,425 vs $38,367. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.9% in 35096 and 22.6% in 35135. Poverty rate reads 12.8% vs 19.0%, and unemployment 1.4% vs 5.6% — 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 $186,700 in 35096 versus $250,600 in 35135, with median rent of $951 and $1,268 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 92.6% vs 79.8%. 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.