ZIP 56239 vs ZIP 56264

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56239 (Ghent, MN) and ZIP 56264 (Minneota, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56239 has a population of 596 at 9 people per square mile, while ZIP 56264 has 2,204 at 7 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 56239 reports a median household income of $99,821 against $81,071 in ZIP 56264, with per-capita income of $47,990 vs $35,932. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 33.8% in 56239 and 22.6% in 56264. Poverty rate reads 6.6% vs 6.7%, and unemployment 0.3% vs 2.3% — 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 $186,400 in 56239 versus $189,600 in 56264, with median rent of $936 and $675 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 86.8% vs 81.1%. 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.