Blue Gap, AZ · standard
ZIP Code 86520
Apache County, Arizona - Census ACS demographics, housing tenure, and business patterns, benchmarked against every US ZIP.
- 1,793
- 3/sq mi Low-density area
- $15,417
- Median income Below-median income area
- $55,800
- Median home value Below-median home value
- 5.8%
- Bachelor's or higher Below-average bachelor's attainment
National ZIP placement
Blue Gap pairs one of the lowest household incomes in the country with among the most affordable home values nationally, in a rural, homeowner-dominated area.
- Lowest
- household income, US ZIPs
- 1st pct
- home value, US ZIPs
- 3
- people per sq mi
- 88%
- owner-occupied homes
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates (2019–2023). Percentiles rank ZIP 86520 against every reporting US ZIP.
ZIP code 86520 covers 640.4 square miles in Blue Gap, Apache County, Arizona (a standard USPS delivery area), with a modest 1,793 residents on file, a density of 3 people per square mile, in the Denver time zone.
ZIP 86520 sits on the lower end of the income spectrum: median household income is $15,417 (79% below the average Arizona ZIP), while per-capita income is $11,696. Economic pressure is pronounced: 53.6% of residents are below the poverty line and unemployment is 36.4%. Home values sit below the statewide ZIP benchmark: the median is $55,800 (83% below the average Arizona ZIP), and median rent is $716; owner occupancy is 87.6%.
Formal educational attainment runs low here: just 5.8% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, the median age is 33, and the average commute is -. No nearby ZIP peer set is available for this delivery area, so the Arizona and national benchmarks above are the appropriate context for 86520.
Every figure on this page is sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (including median rent) and the FHFA House Price Index, no estimates, no proprietary scoring. Verify with Census →
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates + ZIP Code Business Patterns + FHFA HPI ACS demographics and median rent, ZBP business establishments, FHFA HPI for ZIP 86520, Blue Gap, AZ · 2023 Census ACS 5-Year Estimates use a rolling 60-month sample for stable small-geography estimates; ZBP updated annually; FHFA HPI updated quarterly/annually.
Quick Facts
1,793
Population
640.4
Area (sq mi)
3
People / sq mi
Denver
Time Zone
standard
ZIP Type
Who lives in ZIP 86520?
33.0
Median Age
47.2%
Male
52.8%
Female
0.0%
Foreign-Born
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnicity category from the Census Bureau and may overlap with other categories above.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)
How much do residents earn?
$15,417
Median Household Income
-79% vs state ZIP avg
$11,696
Per Capita Income
53.6%
Poverty Rate
36.4%
Unemployment Rate
How ZIP 86520 ranks among Arizona ZIPs
Blue Gap, AZ household income vs. every Arizona ZIP code
Median household income among 372 reporting Arizona ZIPs (this ZIP's population is too small for a reliable national-corpus placement)
$15,417 0th percentile higher than 0% of 372 Arizona ZIPs
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more Arizona ZIPs. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2019–2023
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)
What is the education profile here?
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)
What does housing look like?
Housing stock: occupied vs vacant
1,078housing units
1,078
Total Housing Units
844
Occupied Units
234
Vacant Units
2.72
Avg Household Size
Occupancy Type
$55,800
Median Home Value
-83% vs state ZIP avg
$716
Median Rent
1992
Median Year Built
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)
Nationwide ZIPs with similar ACS profiles
Two Census-derived peer sets for ZIP 86520, both outside AZ so the neighborhoods are not geographic containment (Nearby and same-county blocks stay local).
Similar population
Nearest cross-state ZIPs by resident population (1,793 here; floor ≥1,000).
Similar median household income
Nearest cross-state ZIPs by ACS median household income.
More ZIP Codes in Apache County
Related Areas
Frequently Asked Questions
What county is ZIP code 86520 in?
ZIP code 86520 (Blue Gap) is located in Apache County, Arizona. Apache County contains multiple ZIP codes, see the full list at /counties/apache-az.
What is the population of ZIP code 86520?
ZIP code 86520 in Blue Gap, AZ has a population of 1,793 according to the Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.
What is the median household income in ZIP 86520?
The median household income in ZIP 86520 is $15,417, which is 80% below the national average of $76,288.
What is the average home value in ZIP 86520?
The median home value in ZIP 86520 is $55,800, which is 80% below the national average of $278,155.
What is the demographic makeup of ZIP 86520?
The largest racial group in ZIP 86520 is American Indian or Alaska Native at 99.0%. Hispanic or Latino residents make up 1.2% of the population.
What is the education level in ZIP code 86520?
In ZIP code 86520, 38.3% of residents aged 25+ have a high school diploma or higher, and 5.8% hold a bachelor's degree or higher. These figures come from the Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023).
What percentage of residents own vs. rent in ZIP 86520?
In ZIP code 86520, approximately 87.6% of occupied housing units are owner-occupied and 12.4% are renter-occupied, based on Census ACS 2023 data.
What is the poverty rate in ZIP code 86520?
The poverty rate in ZIP code 86520 is 53.6% according to Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. This measures the percentage of the population living below the federal poverty threshold.
Related
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What to do with ZIP 86520's numbers, next.
- See how ZIP 86520 compares to a neighboring ZIP code on the same Census fields Compare this ZIP
- Check where Blue Gap, AZ ranks among every U.S. ZIP code on income, education, or homeownership View national rankings
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ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are Census Bureau approximations of USPS ZIP codes; figures describe the ZCTA area, not any single address within it.