ZIP 65240 vs ZIP 65285

This side-by-side compares ZIP 65240 (Centralia, MO) and ZIP 65285 (Thompson, MO) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 65240 has a population of 7,590 at 17 people per square mile, while ZIP 65285 has 695 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 65240 reports a median household income of $71,707 against $98,625 in ZIP 65285, with per-capita income of $35,387 vs $42,209. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 35.3% in 65240 and 14.5% in 65285. Poverty rate reads 8.7% vs 1.9%, and unemployment 4.8% 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 $199,300 in 65240 versus $220,800 in 65285, with median rent of $694 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 79.6% vs 92.7%. 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.