ZIP 68340 vs ZIP 68974

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68340 (Deshler, NE) and ZIP 68974 (Ruskin, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68340 has a population of 992 at 6 people per square mile, while ZIP 68974 has 184 at 2 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 68340 reports a median household income of $61,458 against $79,643 in ZIP 68974, with per-capita income of $30,779 vs $53,184. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 21.1% in 68340 and 22.7% in 68974. Poverty rate reads 11.6% vs 9.2%, and unemployment 1.3% 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 $128,300 in 68340 versus $92,000 in 68974, with median rent of $688 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 78.6% vs 97.7%. 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.