ZIP 35640 vs ZIP 35603

This side-by-side compares ZIP 35640 (Hartselle, AL) and ZIP 35603 (Decatur, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 35640 has a population of 24,267 at 85 people per square mile, while ZIP 35603 has 30,545 at 168 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 35640 reports a median household income of $76,620 against $81,490 in ZIP 35603, with per-capita income of $37,240 vs $42,141. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 25.1% in 35640 and 28.3% in 35603. Poverty rate reads 12.9% vs 7.3%, and unemployment 2.4% vs 2.6% — 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 $210,000 in 35640 versus $247,400 in 35603, with median rent of $801 and $910 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 80.1% vs 73.9%. 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.