ZIP 46542 vs ZIP 46553

This side-by-side compares ZIP 46542 (Milford, IN) and ZIP 46553 (New Paris, IN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 46542 has a population of 4,198 at 31 people per square mile, while ZIP 46553 has 3,428 at 42 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 46542 reports a median household income of $78,606 against $89,417 in ZIP 46553, with per-capita income of $30,972 vs $32,519. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 12.0% in 46542 and 21.5% in 46553. Poverty rate reads 4.2% vs 8.8%, and unemployment 1.2% vs 1.0% — 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 $187,900 in 46542 versus $280,200 in 46553, with median rent of $1,092 and $1,045 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.9% vs 87.9%. 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.