ZIP 56218 vs ZIP 56223

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56218 (Boyd, MN) and ZIP 56223 (Clarkfield, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56218 has a population of 628 at 3 people per square mile, while ZIP 56223 has 1,408 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 56218 reports a median household income of $79,375 against $71,667 in ZIP 56223, with per-capita income of $45,671 vs $35,271. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 28.0% in 56218 and 18.4% in 56223. Poverty rate reads 14.3% vs 10.1%, and unemployment 4.3% vs 2.6% — 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 $123,200 in 56218 versus $110,000 in 56223, with median rent of $545 and $806 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 95.3% vs 83.5%. 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.