ZIP 45242 vs ZIP 45249

This side-by-side compares ZIP 45242 (Cincinnati, OH) and ZIP 45249 (Cincinnati, OH) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 45242 has a population of 22,055 at 617 people per square mile, while ZIP 45249 has 12,902 at 761 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 45242 reports a median household income of $124,567 against $105,804 in ZIP 45249, with per-capita income of $78,839 vs $64,324. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 69.7% in 45242 and 66.8% in 45249. Poverty rate reads 4.2% vs 8.9%, and unemployment 2.7% vs 2.8% — 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 $447,100 in 45242 versus $495,000 in 45249, with median rent of $1,782 and $1,519 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 78.3% vs 66.8%. 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.