ZIP 97886 vs ZIP 97862

This side-by-side compares ZIP 97886 (Weston, OR) and ZIP 97862 (Milton Freewater, OR) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 97886 has a population of 1,140 at 3 people per square mile, while ZIP 97862 has 11,666 at 16 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 97886 reports a median household income of $92,955 against $54,786 in ZIP 97862, with per-capita income of $36,393 vs $26,862. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 26.2% in 97886 and 13.8% in 97862. Poverty rate reads 10.7% vs 11.1%, and unemployment 2.7% vs 5.3% — 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 $252,500 in 97886 versus $274,900 in 97862, with median rent of $1,153 and $902 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 88.0% vs 60.6%. 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.