ZIP 78040 vs ZIP 78041

This side-by-side compares ZIP 78040 (Laredo, TX) and ZIP 78041 (Laredo, TX) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 78040 has a population of 42,083 at 2,579 people per square mile, while ZIP 78041 has 44,153 at 931 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 78040 reports a median household income of $36,092 against $61,544 in ZIP 78041, with per-capita income of $17,498 vs $30,026. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 8.6% in 78040 and 28.3% in 78041. Poverty rate reads 34.5% vs 19.9%, and unemployment 6.3% vs 5.4% — 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 $118,700 in 78040 versus $221,300 in 78041, with median rent of $895 and $978 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 37.8% vs 53.7%. 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.