ZIP 56581 vs ZIP 56568

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56581 (Shelly, MN) and ZIP 56568 (Nielsville, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56581 has a population of 287 at 3 people per square mile, while ZIP 56568 has 142 at 2 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 56581 reports a median household income of $53,750 against $40,000 in ZIP 56568, with per-capita income of $34,496 vs $24,819. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 18.3% in 56581 and 8.8% in 56568. Poverty rate reads 16.2% vs 40.0%, and unemployment 10.6% vs 1.5% — 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 $105,900 in 56581 versus $94,000 in 56568, with median rent of $810 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 86.1% vs 96.0%. 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.