ZIP 42204 vs ZIP 42234

This side-by-side compares ZIP 42204 (Allensville, KY) and ZIP 42234 (Guthrie, KY) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 42204 has a population of 657 at 7 people per square mile, while ZIP 42234 has 2,469 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 42204 reports a median household income of $61,452 against $58,259 in ZIP 42234, with per-capita income of $35,843 vs $34,113. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 14.2% in 42204 and 13.8% in 42234. Poverty rate reads 14.6% vs 21.1%, and unemployment 3.9% vs 11.0% — 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 $240,300 in 42204 versus $165,300 in 42234, with median rent of — and $854 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 67.4% vs 61.9%. 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.