ZIP 60621 vs ZIP 60636

This side-by-side compares ZIP 60621 (Chicago, IL) and ZIP 60636 (Chicago, IL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 60621 has a population of 35,912 at 3,719 people per square mile, while ZIP 60636 has 40,916 at 4,038 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 60621 reports a median household income of $31,905 against $38,807 in ZIP 60636, with per-capita income of $19,792 vs $21,709. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 11.4% in 60621 and 10.9% in 60636. Poverty rate reads 32.4% vs 30.4%, and unemployment 20.3% vs 16.4% — 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 $153,500 in 60621 versus $155,300 in 60636, with median rent of $1,049 and $1,155 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 29.4% vs 52.8%. 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.