Research · PlainZIP analysis

Income Gaps Between the ZIP Codes of the Big Postal Cities

Name: Income Gaps Between the ZIP Codes of the Big Postal Cities: the ZIP-level data
Creator: PlainZIP
License: https://plainzip.com/terms

Among the 50 postal city names with the most residential ZIP codes, the ZIP codes named Cincinnati, OH are furthest apart: median household income in 45243 is 8.4 times that in 45225. A postal name reaches past the city's legal limits, so these are gaps between the ZIP codes that use the name, suburbs included, not inside the city itself.

Published October 9, 2026 by PlainZIP · written with AI tools from PlainZIP's database · figures passed the automated checks on October 9, 2026 · method

Highest ZIP median household income divided by the lowest, among the ZIP codes using each postal name, the 12 widest gaps

The gap in each city

Highest and lowest median household income among each city's residential ZIP codes (ACS 2020-2024)
City	ZIP codes	Highest	Lowest	Ratio
Houston, TX	97	77005 · $229,267	77091 · $35,432	6.5×
New York, NY	69	10004 · $250,000 or more	10029 · $38,695	top capped
Los Angeles, CA	66	90049 · $170,607	90007 · $35,378	4.8×
San Antonio, TX	59	78255 · $157,428	78207 · $32,472	4.8×
Miami, FL	56	33158 · $201,597	33142 · $39,608	5.1×
Chicago, IL	56	60654 · $147,357	60621 · $31,905	4.6×
Minneapolis, MN	51	55424 · $250,000 or more	55404 · $41,940	top capped
Dallas, TX	51	75225 · $200,234	75216 · $41,386	4.8×
Philadelphia, PA	50	19106 · $121,047	19133 · $31,034	3.9×
Kansas City, MO	50	64113 · $179,964	64127 · $33,111	5.4×
Cincinnati, OH	46	45243 · $171,172	45225 · $20,348	8.4×
Saint Louis, MO	46	63131 · $225,493	63115 · $30,622	7.4×
Austin, TX	44	78739 · $238,559	78753 · $65,170	3.7×
Las Vegas, NV	44	89138 · $161,645	89101 · $39,459	4.1×
Pittsburgh, PA	43	15241 · $153,936	15219 · $34,897	4.4×
Oklahoma City, OK	43	73173 · $143,864	73117 · $23,413	6.1×
Denver, CO	43	80238 · $180,940	80260 · $61,852	2.9×
Phoenix, AZ	43	85045 · $153,583	85009 · $52,054	3.0×
San Diego, CA	41	92130 · $205,680	92113 · $61,819	3.3×
Atlanta, GA	40	30327 · $189,250	30314 · $42,089	4.5×
Brooklyn, NY	38	11215 · $185,865	11239 · $38,015	4.9×
Indianapolis, IN	38	46278 · $158,648	46218 · $38,063	4.2×
Tucson, AZ	38	85718 · $114,892	85705 · $37,194	3.1×
Seattle, WA	38	98117 · $182,984	98104 · $61,460	3.0×
Portland, OR	35	97229 · $161,570	97205 · $57,288	2.8×
Orlando, FL	34	32814 · $140,274	32805 · $40,515	3.5×
Louisville, KY	34	40245 · $122,948	40203 · $30,794	4.0×
Jacksonville, FL	33	32226 · $110,179	32209 · $30,514	3.6×
Omaha, NE	33	68135 · $143,676	68110 · $39,813	3.6×
Fort Worth, TX	32	76126 · $113,905	76105 · $45,770	2.5×
Birmingham, AL	31	35223 · $168,278	35207 · $31,486	5.3×
Columbus, OH	31	43221 · $118,768	43211 · $42,579	2.8×
Saint Paul, MN	31	55129 · $143,795	55103 · $48,390	3.0×
Colorado Springs, CO	31	80927 · $163,803	80903 · $61,768	2.7×
Dayton, OH	30	45434 · $135,948	45417 · $36,945	3.7×
Buffalo, NY	29	14221 · $101,615	14204 · $28,182	3.6×
Charlotte, NC	29	28211 · $132,917	28212 · $52,723	2.5×
Memphis, TN	29	38120 · $123,538	38106 · $30,232	4.1×
Cleveland, OH	29	44124 · $82,392	44115 · $22,056	3.7×
Milwaukee, WI	29	53217 · $133,021	53206 · $29,336	4.5×
Tulsa, OK	29	74137 · $102,798	74106 · $40,776	2.5×
San Francisco, CA	29	94105 · $225,000	94102 · $60,431	3.7×
Detroit, MI	28	48226 · $64,860	48201 · $24,749	2.6×
Sacramento, CA	28	95819 · $136,306	95824 · $56,477	2.4×
San Jose, CA	28	95120 · $250,000 or more	95116 · $85,818	top capped
Fort Lauderdale, FL	27	33332 · $172,730	33313 · $46,305	3.7×
Tampa, FL	27	33629 · $164,355	33605 · $36,975	4.4×
Wichita, KS	27	67230 · $149,536	67214 · $35,192	4.2×
Bronx, NY	25	10471 · $103,046	10454 · $24,086	4.3×
Rochester, NY	25	14618 · $125,098	14605 · $21,201	5.9×

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates (B19013); ZIP codes grouped by USPS postal name. (tables at data.census.gov)

Method and limits

Postal city names with 8 or more residential ZIP codes, the 50 with the most. A ZIP code belongs to a name when USPS uses that name for it; postal names often cover suburbs outside the city's legal boundary. The ratio divides the highest ZIP median household income by the lowest, among ZIP codes of 1,000 or more people living in households whose estimate's margin is at most 25% of it; names whose top ZIP sits at the $250,000 cap show no ratio. ZIP codes where most residents are students (median age under 23, fewer than a quarter of residents under 18: a campus such as 78705 in Austin) do not set the lowest end.

Every figure on this page is read from the PlainZIP database, built from the files named above; the same figures appear on each ZIP code's own page. The ZIP-level figures are one file: every ZIP code as CSV (columns on the methodology page).