ZIP 43209 vs ZIP 43205

This side-by-side compares ZIP 43209 (Columbus, OH) and ZIP 43205 (Columbus, OH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 43209 has a population of 27,228 at 1,685 people per square mile, while ZIP 43205 has 12,272 at 1,997 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 43209 reports a median household income of $89,713 against $60,181 in ZIP 43205, with per-capita income of $62,488 vs $41,673. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 58.6% in 43209 and 44.8% in 43205. Poverty rate reads 8.0% vs 22.4%, and unemployment 4.3% vs 5.1% — 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 $392,500 in 43209 versus $317,300 in 43205, with median rent of $1,154 and $1,084 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 57.9% vs 37.3%. 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.