ZIP 52227 vs ZIP 52403

This side-by-side compares ZIP 52227 (Ely, IA) and ZIP 52403 (Cedar Rapids, IA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 52227 has a population of 2,461 at 33 people per square mile, while ZIP 52403 has 23,673 at 348 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 52227 reports a median household income of $120,230 against $74,703 in ZIP 52403, with per-capita income of $49,050 vs $52,030. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 39.3% in 52227 and 40.9% in 52403. Poverty rate reads 1.8% vs 7.4%, and unemployment 1.6% vs 3.5% — 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 $341,900 in 52227 versus $206,900 in 52403, with median rent of $897 and $870 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.1% vs 77.0%. 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.