ZIP 88220 vs ZIP 88268

This side-by-side compares ZIP 88220 (Carlsbad, NM) and ZIP 88268 (Whites City, NM) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 88220 has a population of 33,725 at 6 people per square mile, while ZIP 88268 has 7 at 18 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 88220 reports a median household income of $78,162 against — in ZIP 88268, with per-capita income of $39,951 vs —. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 19.3% in 88220 and — in 88268. Poverty rate reads 13.3% vs —, and unemployment 5.2% vs — — 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 $206,900 in 88220 versus — in 88268, with median rent of $1,241 and — per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 74.0% vs —. 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.