ZIP 68937 vs ZIP 68976

This side-by-side compares ZIP 68937 (Elwood, NE) and ZIP 68976 (Smithfield, NE) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 68937 has a population of 1,836 at 5 people per square mile, while ZIP 68976 has 316 at 1 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 68937 reports a median household income of $85,260 against $54,063 in ZIP 68976, with per-capita income of $50,046 vs $54,224. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 27.9% in 68937 and 41.8% in 68976. Poverty rate reads 5.0% vs 11.1%, and unemployment 1.8% vs 4.4% — 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 $316,800 in 68937 versus $115,000 in 68976, with median rent of $649 and $939 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 84.7% vs 58.8%. 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.