ZIP 92104 vs ZIP 92116

This side-by-side compares ZIP 92104 (San Diego, CA) and ZIP 92116 (San Diego, CA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 92104 has a population of 44,414 at 4,531 people per square mile, while ZIP 92116 has 31,680 at 3,562 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 92104 reports a median household income of $94,014 against $98,154 in ZIP 92116, with per-capita income of $61,459 vs $70,006. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 54.8% in 92104 and 59.2% in 92116. Poverty rate reads 11.0% vs 11.2%, and unemployment 5.7% vs 5.1% — 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 $914,700 in 92104 versus $940,700 in 92116, with median rent of $1,993 and $1,942 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 28.8% vs 32.4%. 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.