ZIP 37738 vs ZIP 37863

This side-by-side compares ZIP 37738 (Gatlinburg, TN) and ZIP 37863 (Pigeon Forge, TN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 37738 has a population of 5,288 at 10 people per square mile, while ZIP 37863 has 6,569 at 138 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 37738 reports a median household income of $57,330 against $53,191 in ZIP 37863, with per-capita income of $30,926 vs $25,488. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 28.6% in 37738 and 15.1% in 37863. Poverty rate reads 11.3% vs 19.8%, and unemployment 2.8% vs 3.6% — 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 $334,100 in 37738 versus $284,100 in 37863, with median rent of $1,133 and $1,039 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 68.0% vs 47.3%. 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.