ZIP 72946 vs ZIP 72934

This side-by-side compares ZIP 72946 (Mountainburg, AR) and ZIP 72934 (Chester, AR) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 72946 has a population of 3,654 at 15 people per square mile, while ZIP 72934 has 1,047 at 6 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 72946 reports a median household income of $75,494 against $59,282 in ZIP 72934, with per-capita income of $29,487 vs $29,175. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 27.2% in 72946 and 14.2% in 72934. Poverty rate reads 21.1% vs 3.8%, and unemployment 1.6% vs 1.4% — 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 $165,100 in 72946 versus $177,100 in 72934, with median rent of $775 and $700 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 89.8% vs 95.1%. 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.