ZIP 48017 vs ZIP 48073

This side-by-side compares ZIP 48017 (Clawson, MI) and ZIP 48073 (Royal Oak, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 48017 has a population of 11,805 at 2,076 people per square mile, while ZIP 48073 has 32,798 at 1,716 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 48017 reports a median household income of $88,812 against $91,627 in ZIP 48073, with per-capita income of $52,175 vs $60,812. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 45.8% in 48017 and 60.7% in 48073. Poverty rate reads 5.7% vs 6.2%, and unemployment 4.9% vs 3.0% — 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 $267,500 in 48017 versus $323,600 in 48073, with median rent of $1,254 and $1,283 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 75.4% vs 68.4%. 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.