ZIP 85262 vs ZIP 85377

This side-by-side compares ZIP 85262 (Scottsdale, AZ) and ZIP 85377 (Carefree, AZ) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 85262 has a population of 11,275 at 34 people per square mile, while ZIP 85377 has 3,051 at 139 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 85262 reports a median household income of $177,790 against $149,167 in ZIP 85377, with per-capita income of $120,343 vs $91,234. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 58.3% in 85262 and 64.1% in 85377. Poverty rate reads 7.7% vs 8.3%, and unemployment 2.1% vs 3.9% — 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 $1,287,300 in 85262 versus $1,077,500 in 85377, with median rent of $2,899 and $1,538 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 96.9% vs 90.4%. 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.