ZIP 56446 vs ZIP 56440

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56446 (Eagle Bend, MN) and ZIP 56440 (Clarissa, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56446 has a population of 1,597 at 6 people per square mile, while ZIP 56440 has 1,409 at 10 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 56446 reports a median household income of $56,979 against $53,250 in ZIP 56440, with per-capita income of $29,335 vs $26,562. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 9.4% in 56446 and 10.0% in 56440. Poverty rate reads 12.6% vs 20.3%, and unemployment 2.8% vs 4.2% — 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 $151,500 in 56446 versus $129,800 in 56440, with median rent of $800 and $813 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 88.0% vs 81.5%. 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.