ZIP 38866 vs ZIP 38804

This side-by-side compares ZIP 38866 (Saltillo, MS) and ZIP 38804 (Tupelo, MS) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 38866 has a population of 11,897 at 61 people per square mile, while ZIP 38804 has 17,285 at 83 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 38866 reports a median household income of $78,791 against $64,420 in ZIP 38804, with per-capita income of $35,916 vs $39,832. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 29.1% in 38866 and 30.8% in 38804. Poverty rate reads 9.9% vs 17.8%, and unemployment 6.1% vs 2.9% — 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 $221,100 in 38866 versus $219,700 in 38804, with median rent of $886 and $872 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 85.1% vs 63.7%. 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.