ZIP 48314 vs ZIP 48317

This side-by-side compares ZIP 48314 (Sterling Heights, MI) and ZIP 48317 (Utica, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 48314 has a population of 20,245 at 1,015 people per square mile, while ZIP 48317 has 26,610 at 848 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 48314 reports a median household income of $85,889 against $72,917 in ZIP 48317, with per-capita income of $47,712 vs $37,687. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 35.9% in 48314 and 32.4% in 48317. Poverty rate reads 8.6% vs 12.5%, and unemployment 1.9% vs 3.9% — 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 $331,500 in 48314 versus $265,300 in 48317, with median rent of $1,476 and $1,314 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 75.9% vs 57.5%. 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.