ZIP 46036 vs ZIP 46044

This side-by-side compares ZIP 46036 (Elwood, IN) and ZIP 46044 (Frankton, IN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 46036 has a population of 11,663 at 57 people per square mile, while ZIP 46044 has 2,965 at 52 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 46036 reports a median household income of $62,074 against $81,402 in ZIP 46044, with per-capita income of $31,363 vs $37,711. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 13.0% in 46036 and 17.4% in 46044. Poverty rate reads 15.8% vs 7.8%, and unemployment 5.7% vs 3.1% — 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 $117,700 in 46036 versus $163,600 in 46044, with median rent of $865 and $1,197 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 72.9% vs 89.1%. 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.