ZIP 46204 vs ZIP 46202

This side-by-side compares ZIP 46204 (Indianapolis, IN) and ZIP 46202 (Indianapolis, IN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 46204 has a population of 5,125 at 1,761 people per square mile, while ZIP 46202 has 16,335 at 1,128 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 46204 reports a median household income of $86,396 against $63,506 in ZIP 46202, with per-capita income of $67,139 vs $55,477. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 63.1% in 46204 and 64.9% in 46202. Poverty rate reads 19.3% vs 22.6%, and unemployment 2.6% vs 4.8% — 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 $381,400 in 46204 versus $439,200 in 46202, with median rent of $1,638 and $1,288 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 14.1% vs 29.4%. 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.