ZIP 46953 vs ZIP 46938

This side-by-side compares ZIP 46953 (Marion, IN) and ZIP 46938 (Jonesboro, IN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 46953 has a population of 24,177 at 110 people per square mile, while ZIP 46938 has 3,200 at 40 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 46953 reports a median household income of $46,288 against $45,884 in ZIP 46938, with per-capita income of $23,357 vs $31,033. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 17.1% in 46953 and 19.1% in 46938. Poverty rate reads 28.0% vs 16.9%, and unemployment 8.7% vs 5.9% — 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 $89,200 in 46953 versus $98,800 in 46938, with median rent of $835 and $1,020 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 67.8% vs 81.1%. 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.