ZIP 85256 vs ZIP 85201

This side-by-side compares ZIP 85256 (Scottsdale, AZ) and ZIP 85201 (Mesa, AZ) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 85256 has a population of 4,974 at 58 people per square mile, while ZIP 85201 has 46,092 at 1,906 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 85256 reports a median household income of $44,844 against $67,294 in ZIP 85201, with per-capita income of $22,233 vs $34,993. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 12.4% in 85256 and 27.8% in 85201. Poverty rate reads 29.3% vs 16.5%, and unemployment 12.8% vs 5.9% — 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 $190,500 in 85256 versus $328,800 in 85201, with median rent of $564 and $1,445 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.2% vs 39.4%. 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.