ZIP 62422 vs ZIP 62438

This side-by-side compares ZIP 62422 (Cowden, IL) and ZIP 62438 (Lakewood, IL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 62422 has a population of 1,156 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 62438 has 433 at 6 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 62422 reports a median household income of $75,074 against $71,786 in ZIP 62438, with per-capita income of $30,403 vs $43,171. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 13.0% in 62422 and 39.7% in 62438. Poverty rate reads 14.6% vs 0.0%, and unemployment 4.7% vs 0.0% — 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 $105,900 in 62422 versus $218,400 in 62438, with median rent of $720 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 78.7% vs 90.0%. 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.