ZIP 38663 vs ZIP 38683

This side-by-side compares ZIP 38663 (Ripley, MS) and ZIP 38683 (Walnut, MS) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 38663 has a population of 11,950 at 23 people per square mile, while ZIP 38683 has 5,637 at 16 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 38663 reports a median household income of $52,141 against $39,107 in ZIP 38683, with per-capita income of $29,966 vs $24,834. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.0% in 38663 and 13.7% in 38683. Poverty rate reads 22.9% vs 21.1%, and unemployment 6.8% 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 $148,200 in 38663 versus $116,100 in 38683, with median rent of $770 and $547 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 74.7% vs 75.6%. 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.