ZIP 76431 vs ZIP 76270

This side-by-side compares ZIP 76431 (Chico, TX) and ZIP 76270 (Sunset, TX) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 76431 has a population of 3,384 at 11 people per square mile, while ZIP 76270 has 1,853 at 7 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 76431 reports a median household income of $86,875 against $73,553 in ZIP 76270, with per-capita income of $34,677 vs $35,264. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.3% in 76431 and 13.3% in 76270. Poverty rate reads 14.9% vs 15.0%, and unemployment 7.8% vs 12.3% — 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 $194,700 in 76431 versus $235,200 in 76270, with median rent of $1,308 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 85.7% vs 97.4%. 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.