ZIP 51632 vs ZIP 51601

This side-by-side compares ZIP 51632 (Clarinda, IA) and ZIP 51601 (Shenandoah, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 51632 has a population of 7,297 at 14 people per square mile, while ZIP 51601 has 6,025 at 22 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 51632 reports a median household income of $55,055 against $62,143 in ZIP 51601, with per-capita income of $30,714 vs $34,465. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.1% in 51632 and 19.4% in 51601. Poverty rate reads 10.8% vs 19.1%, and unemployment 5.6% vs 6.0% — 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 $143,000 in 51632 versus $124,200 in 51601, with median rent of $667 and $780 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 72.4% vs 60.0%. 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.