ZIP 55940 vs ZIP 55973

This side-by-side compares ZIP 55940 (Hayfield, MN) and ZIP 55973 (Sargeant, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 55940 has a population of 2,666 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 55973 has 285 at 4 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 55940 reports a median household income of $83,885 against $110,417 in ZIP 55973, with per-capita income of $39,241 vs $48,778. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 24.4% in 55940 and 19.1% in 55973. Poverty rate reads 10.5% vs 6.8%, and unemployment 3.5% vs 1.3% — 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 $245,900 in 55940 versus $286,100 in 55973, with median rent of $995 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 77.4% vs 91.9%. 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.