ZIP 63834 vs ZIP 63845

This side-by-side compares ZIP 63834 (Charleston, MO) and ZIP 63845 (East Prairie, MO) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 63834 has a population of 7,135 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 63845 has 5,814 at 11 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 63834 reports a median household income of $41,348 against $51,207 in ZIP 63845, with per-capita income of $20,307 vs $26,722. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 11.1% in 63834 and 18.1% in 63845. Poverty rate reads 22.1% vs 15.7%, and unemployment 4.3% vs 2.2% — 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 $114,000 in 63834 versus $110,200 in 63845, with median rent of $770 and $789 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 54.2% vs 62.5%. 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.