ZIP 68508 vs ZIP 68503

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68508 (Lincoln, NE) and ZIP 68503 (Lincoln, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68508 has a population of 14,475 at 1,892 people per square mile, while ZIP 68503 has 15,264 at 1,989 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 68508 reports a median household income of $31,191 against $54,232 in ZIP 68503, with per-capita income of $19,055 vs $28,446. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 34.7% in 68508 and 39.5% in 68503. Poverty rate reads 43.8% vs 25.1%, and unemployment 8.6% vs 5.4% — 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 $143,600 in 68508 versus $169,300 in 68503, with median rent of $785 and $1,023 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 8.5% vs 38.9%. 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.