ZIP 36609 vs ZIP 36693

This side-by-side compares ZIP 36609 (Mobile, AL) and ZIP 36693 (Mobile, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 36609 has a population of 25,846 at 1,417 people per square mile, while ZIP 36693 has 17,847 at 547 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 36609 reports a median household income of $49,830 against $68,933 in ZIP 36693, with per-capita income of $34,729 vs $37,423. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 34.5% in 36609 and 38.7% in 36693. Poverty rate reads 17.6% vs 8.4%, and unemployment 3.8% vs 5.9% — 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 $205,300 in 36609 versus $210,200 in 36693, with median rent of $1,087 and $1,156 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 46.0% vs 69.9%. 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.