ZIP 54982 vs ZIP 54984

This side-by-side compares ZIP 54982 (Wautoma, WI) and ZIP 54984 (Wild Rose, WI) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 54982 has a population of 7,117 at 22 people per square mile, while ZIP 54984 has 2,989 at 15 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 54982 reports a median household income of $64,201 against $64,120 in ZIP 54984, with per-capita income of $52,444 vs $41,477. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 21.6% in 54982 and 20.2% in 54984. Poverty rate reads 14.7% vs 11.0%, and unemployment 5.1% vs 3.2% — 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 $203,100 in 54982 versus $216,200 in 54984, with median rent of $820 and $854 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.5% vs 76.4%. 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.