ZIP 56331 vs ZIP 56356

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56331 (Freeport, MN) and ZIP 56356 (New Munich, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56331 has a population of 2,019 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 56356 has 300 at 308 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 56331 reports a median household income of $96,042 against $85,000 in ZIP 56356, with per-capita income of $47,089 vs $33,747. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 21.0% in 56331 and 14.9% in 56356. Poverty rate reads 2.1% vs 3.6%, and unemployment 1.3% vs 0.7% — 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 $271,800 in 56331 versus $178,100 in 56356, with median rent of $813 and $1,188 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 89.1% vs 95.7%. 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.