ZIP 53530 vs ZIP 53541

This side-by-side compares ZIP 53530 (Darlington, WI) and ZIP 53541 (Gratiot, WI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 53530 has a population of 4,566 at 13 people per square mile, while ZIP 53541 has 861 at 5 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 53530 reports a median household income of $69,511 against $58,438 in ZIP 53541, with per-capita income of $34,529 vs $38,326. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 22.5% in 53530 and 18.1% in 53541. Poverty rate reads 15.5% vs 14.5%, and unemployment 4.5% 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 $181,800 in 53530 versus $245,000 in 53541, with median rent of $868 and $750 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.8% vs 80.4%. 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.