ZIP 90266 vs ZIP 90254

This side-by-side compares ZIP 90266 (Manhattan Beach, CA) and ZIP 90254 (Hermosa Beach, CA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 90266 has a population of 35,135 at 3,446 people per square mile, while ZIP 90254 has 19,506 at 5,279 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 90266 reports a median household income of $204,306 against $166,442 in ZIP 90254, with per-capita income of $118,152 vs $111,872. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 78.9% in 90266 and 76.0% in 90254. Poverty rate reads 4.5% vs 5.6%, and unemployment 3.8% vs 5.4% — 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 $2,000,001 in 90266 versus $2,000,001 in 90254, with median rent of $3,449 and $2,887 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 64.8% vs 50.6%. 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.