ZIP 39342 vs ZIP 39305

This side-by-side compares ZIP 39342 (Marion, MS) and ZIP 39305 (Meridian, MS) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 39342 has a population of 1,287 at 201 people per square mile, while ZIP 39305 has 20,431 at 72 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 39342 reports a median household income of $45,298 against $67,712 in ZIP 39305, with per-capita income of $21,597 vs $36,356. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 24.5% in 39342 and 36.4% in 39305. Poverty rate reads 23.5% vs 24.0%, and unemployment 7.8% vs 6.9% — 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 $187,300 in 39342 versus $172,400 in 39305, with median rent of $1,074 and $1,155 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 50.2% vs 68.1%. 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.