ZIP 81520 vs ZIP 81503

This side-by-side compares ZIP 81520 (Clifton, CO) and ZIP 81503 (Grand Junction, CO) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 81520 has a population of 13,447 at 251 people per square mile, while ZIP 81503 has 15,250 at 168 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 81520 reports a median household income of $50,283 against $75,053 in ZIP 81503, with per-capita income of $27,088 vs $33,457. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 14.0% in 81520 and 24.8% in 81503. Poverty rate reads 20.9% vs 7.6%, and unemployment 8.3% vs 4.3% — 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 $249,600 in 81520 versus $352,100 in 81503, with median rent of $1,026 and $985 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 67.3% vs 77.1%. 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.