ZIP 56687 vs ZIP 56601

This side-by-side compares ZIP 56687 (Wilton, MN) and ZIP 56601 (Bemidji, MN) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 56687 has a population of 73 at 15 people per square mile, while ZIP 56601 has 32,225 at 34 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 56687 reports a median household income of — against $72,262 in ZIP 56601, with per-capita income of — vs $38,496. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is — in 56687 and 37.1% in 56601. Poverty rate reads — vs 13.4%, and unemployment — 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 — in 56687 versus $260,900 in 56601, with median rent of — and $1,088 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is — vs 67.2%. 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.