ZIP 61008 vs ZIP 61038

This side-by-side compares ZIP 61008 (Belvidere, IL) and ZIP 61038 (Garden Prairie, IL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 61008 has a population of 34,311 at 153 people per square mile, while ZIP 61038 has 1,354 at 12 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 61008 reports a median household income of $76,604 against $104,875 in ZIP 61038, with per-capita income of $39,514 vs $29,870. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 20.7% in 61008 and 22.6% in 61038. Poverty rate reads 12.3% vs 13.5%, and unemployment 6.8% 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 $195,800 in 61008 versus $281,600 in 61038, with median rent of $998 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.6% vs 95.4%. 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.