ZIP 55371 vs ZIP 56353

This side-by-side compares ZIP 55371 (Princeton, MN) and ZIP 56353 (Milaca, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 55371 has a population of 16,442 at 34 people per square mile, while ZIP 56353 has 8,996 at 19 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 55371 reports a median household income of $93,824 against $78,763 in ZIP 56353, with per-capita income of $38,223 vs $37,424. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.6% in 55371 and 17.0% in 56353. Poverty rate reads 6.4% vs 8.4%, and unemployment 2.4% vs 3.3% — 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 $327,200 in 55371 versus $263,200 in 56353, with median rent of $975 and $858 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.9% vs 79.8%. 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.