ZIP 68787 vs ZIP 68740

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68787 (Wayne, NE) and ZIP 68740 (Hoskins, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68787 has a population of 6,647 at 18 people per square mile, while ZIP 68740 has 892 at 5 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 68787 reports a median household income of $60,275 against $103,500 in ZIP 68740, with per-capita income of $28,646 vs $42,336. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 34.9% in 68787 and 28.4% in 68740. Poverty rate reads 17.5% vs 8.1%, and unemployment 5.9% 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 $230,700 in 68787 versus $365,900 in 68740, with median rent of $792 and $1,344 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 48.7% vs 87.7%. 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.