ZIP 98520 vs ZIP 98550

This side-by-side compares ZIP 98520 (Aberdeen, WA) and ZIP 98550 (Hoquiam, WA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 98520 has a population of 23,814 at 39 people per square mile, while ZIP 98550 has 11,382 at 21 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 98520 reports a median household income of $58,153 against $55,040 in ZIP 98550, with per-capita income of $29,582 vs $32,418. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 14.8% in 98520 and 19.3% in 98550. Poverty rate reads 19.6% vs 18.0%, and unemployment 8.7% vs 7.2% — 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 $250,800 in 98520 versus $238,900 in 98550, with median rent of $1,051 and $1,046 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 64.6% vs 66.7%. 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.