ZIP 68643 vs ZIP 68631

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68643 (Leigh, NE) and ZIP 68631 (Creston, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68643 has a population of 903 at 4 people per square mile, while ZIP 68631 has 480 at 4 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 68643 reports a median household income of $77,125 against $86,750 in ZIP 68631, with per-capita income of $41,266 vs $35,937. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 23.1% in 68643 and 28.0% in 68631. Poverty rate reads 4.6% vs 2.4%, and unemployment 0.0% 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 $156,900 in 68643 versus $200,000 in 68631, with median rent of $890 and $625 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 87.3% vs 83.7%. 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.