ZIP 62837 vs ZIP 62809

This side-by-side compares ZIP 62837 (Fairfield, IL) and ZIP 62809 (Barnhill, IL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 62837 has a population of 8,867 at 21 people per square mile, while ZIP 62809 has 142 at 5 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 62837 reports a median household income of $50,536 against $43,900 in ZIP 62809, with per-capita income of $35,654 vs $25,075. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 15.0% in 62837 and 16.6% in 62809. Poverty rate reads 15.6% vs 6.7%, and unemployment 2.4% vs 31.6% — 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 $103,900 in 62837 versus $116,300 in 62809, with median rent of $603 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 76.8% vs 93.5%. 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.