ZIP 68736 vs ZIP 68774

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68736 (Fordyce, NE) and ZIP 68774 (Saint Helena, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68736 has a population of 726 at 4 people per square mile, while ZIP 68774 has 348 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 68736 reports a median household income of $84,063 against $86,167 in ZIP 68774, with per-capita income of $38,553 vs $53,013. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 31.7% in 68736 and 14.8% in 68774. Poverty rate reads 14.9% vs 1.7%, and unemployment 11.5% vs 1.3% — 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 $225,000 in 68736 versus $189,600 in 68774, with median rent of $1,042 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 90.0% vs 80.9%. 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.