ZIP 56566 vs ZIP 56589

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56566 (Naytahwaush, MN) and ZIP 56589 (Waubun, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56566 has a population of 668 at 14 people per square mile, while ZIP 56589 has 1,975 at 3 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 56566 reports a median household income of $44,583 against $72,969 in ZIP 56589, with per-capita income of $20,432 vs $33,247. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 11.6% in 56566 and 22.7% in 56589. Poverty rate reads 34.4% vs 15.4%, and unemployment 16.7% vs 10.0% — 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 $118,300 in 56566 versus $200,000 in 56589, with median rent of $400 and $608 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 53.2% vs 87.0%. 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.