ZIP 49242 vs ZIP 49266

This side-by-side compares ZIP 49242 (Hillsdale, MI) and ZIP 49266 (Osseo, MI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 49242 has a population of 15,248 at 65 people per square mile, while ZIP 49266 has 2,942 at 26 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 49242 reports a median household income of $61,029 against $66,173 in ZIP 49266, with per-capita income of $29,984 vs $32,138. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 26.1% in 49242 and 14.5% in 49266. Poverty rate reads 15.1% vs 8.1%, and unemployment 4.7% vs 2.5% — 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 $183,700 in 49242 versus $170,800 in 49266, with median rent of $806 and $1,108 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 73.2% vs 91.9%. 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.