ZIP 64054 vs ZIP 64053

This side-by-side compares ZIP 64054 (Independence, MO) and ZIP 64053 (Independence, MO) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 64054 has a population of 3,731 at 715 people per square mile, while ZIP 64053 has 5,319 at 639 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 64054 reports a median household income of $59,719 against $47,285 in ZIP 64053, with per-capita income of $30,798 vs $21,010. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 21.1% in 64054 and 10.6% in 64053. Poverty rate reads 13.2% vs 32.6%, and unemployment 4.2% vs 7.7% — 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 $117,600 in 64054 versus $80,200 in 64053, with median rent of $1,245 and $989 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 70.8% vs 52.7%. 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.