ZIP 55018 vs ZIP 55053

This side-by-side compares ZIP 55018 (Dennison, MN) and ZIP 55053 (Nerstrand, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 55018 has a population of 997 at 8 people per square mile, while ZIP 55053 has 1,009 at 9 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 55018 reports a median household income of $83,854 against $101,406 in ZIP 55053, with per-capita income of $50,481 vs $41,174. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 27.9% in 55018 and 28.6% in 55053. Poverty rate reads 4.0% vs 4.8%, and unemployment 2.0% vs 1.1% — 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 $352,100 in 55018 versus $353,900 in 55053, with median rent of $1,288 and $1,000 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 83.1% vs 94.1%. 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.