ZIP 98235 vs ZIP 98233

This side-by-side compares ZIP 98235 (Clearlake, WA) and ZIP 98233 (Burlington, WA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 98235 has a population of 103 at 1,297 people per square mile, while ZIP 98233 has 14,871 at 170 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 98235 reports a median household income of $63,307 against $87,614 in ZIP 98233, with per-capita income of $37,202 vs $39,379. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 6.4% in 98235 and 22.3% in 98233. Poverty rate reads 25.2% vs 12.7%, and unemployment 2.0% vs 5.0% — 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 $518,900 in 98235 versus $502,100 in 98233, with median rent of — and $1,708 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 74.1% vs 59.4%. 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.