ZIP 80642 vs ZIP 80603

This side-by-side compares ZIP 80642 (Hudson, CO) and ZIP 80603 (Brighton, CO) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 80642 has a population of 4,309 at 18 people per square mile, while ZIP 80603 has 11,973 at 58 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 80642 reports a median household income of $105,225 against $118,297 in ZIP 80603, with per-capita income of $49,050 vs $44,860. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 20.7% in 80642 and 23.5% in 80603. Poverty rate reads 8.1% vs 7.5%, and unemployment 2.2% vs 2.2% — 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 $620,000 in 80642 versus $492,000 in 80603, with median rent of $1,218 and $2,578 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 88.6% vs 91.1%. 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.