ZIP 44044 vs ZIP 44253

This side-by-side compares ZIP 44044 (Grafton, OH) and ZIP 44253 (Litchfield, OH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 44044 has a population of 15,951 at 111 people per square mile, while ZIP 44253 has 3,218 at 50 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 44044 reports a median household income of $88,333 against $91,500 in ZIP 44253, with per-capita income of $34,000 vs $42,160. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 17.6% in 44044 and 26.2% in 44253. Poverty rate reads 5.9% vs 11.5%, and unemployment 5.5% vs 0.2% — 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 $257,500 in 44044 versus $283,300 in 44253, with median rent of $1,072 and $2,032 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 90.1% vs 89.4%. 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.