ZIP 68404 vs ZIP 68438

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68404 (Martell, NE) and ZIP 68438 (Sprague, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68404 has a population of 902 at 7 people per square mile, while ZIP 68438 has 142 at 564 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 68404 reports a median household income of $112,643 against $81,250 in ZIP 68438, with per-capita income of $37,146 vs $29,810. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 27.7% in 68404 and 32.4% in 68438. Poverty rate reads 9.0% vs 19.3%, and unemployment 0.0% vs 9.1% — 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 $313,100 in 68404 versus $197,300 in 68438, with median rent of — and $1,607 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 96.4% vs 82.8%. 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.