ZIP 36535 vs ZIP 36555

This side-by-side compares ZIP 36535 (Foley, AL) and ZIP 36555 (Magnolia Springs, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 36535 has a population of 26,767 at 113 people per square mile, while ZIP 36555 has 654 at 300 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 36535 reports a median household income of $66,714 against $86,705 in ZIP 36555, with per-capita income of $38,076 vs $48,490. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 25.1% in 36535 and 56.0% in 36555. Poverty rate reads 13.3% vs 11.6%, and unemployment 4.3% vs 2.4% — 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 $282,700 in 36535 versus $435,200 in 36555, with median rent of $1,235 and $1,156 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.4% vs 86.9%. 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.