ZIP 68442 vs ZIP 68437

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68442 (Stella, NE) and ZIP 68437 (Shubert, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68442 has a population of 313 at 3 people per square mile, while ZIP 68437 has 261 at 3 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 68442 reports a median household income of $65,000 against $43,750 in ZIP 68437, with per-capita income of $39,878 vs $51,017. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 25.3% in 68442 and 31.8% in 68437. Poverty rate reads 8.5% vs 7.4%, and unemployment 14.0% vs 4.9% — 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 $127,100 in 68442 versus $64,400 in 68437, with median rent of — and $850 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 87.3% vs 85.8%. 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.