ZIP 45115 vs ZIP 45168

This side-by-side compares ZIP 45115 (Decatur, OH) and ZIP 45168 (Russellville, OH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 45115 has a population of 78 at 29 people per square mile, while ZIP 45168 has 1,607 at 19 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 45115 reports a median household income of $49,844 against $74,167 in ZIP 45168, with per-capita income of $25,756 vs $44,301. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 63.5% in 45115 and 14.1% in 45168. Poverty rate reads 0.0% vs 13.7%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 9.5% — 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 — in 45115 versus $173,100 in 45168, with median rent of — and $1,077 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 80.0% vs 71.0%. 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.