Insights & Rankings Compare

Compare ZIP codes side by side

Line up 2–5 ZIP codes and read the ZipVitals Score, both ranks, and every scoring domain against the same national scale. Descriptive of documented conditions — never a verdict on the people who live there.

Comparing50428Clear Lake, IA14227Buffalo, NY2–5 ZIPs · 2 selected

ZipVitals Score and its national and state ranks, compared across 2 ZIP codes. Higher is healthier. The nine scoring domains follow, one table each.
Metric	Clear Lake50428 · IA	Buffalo14227 · NY
ZipVitals ScoreComposite of 9 scoring domains	55.38	58.61 Leads
National rankAmong ZIPs with a computed score	#9,002of 32,066 US ZIPs	#5,882of 32,066 US ZIPs Leads
State rankAmong ZIPs with a computed score	#240of 922 IA ZIPs	#729of 1,730 NY ZIPs
Metro rankAmong ZIPs with a computed score	Not in a metro area	#41of 86 ZIPs in its metro area

ZipVitals Score and its national and state ranks, compared across 2 ZIP codes. Higher is healthier. The nine scoring domains follow, one table each.
Metric	Clear Lake50428 · IA	Buffalo14227 · NY
ZipVitals Score	55.38	58.61 Leads
National rank	#9,002of 32,066 US ZIPs	#5,882of 32,066 US ZIPs Leads
State rank	#240of 922 IA ZIPs	#729of 1,730 NY ZIPs
Metro rank	Not in a metro area	#41of 86 ZIPs in its metro area

ZipVitals Score — Composite of 9 scoring domainsNational rank, State rank and Metro rank — Among ZIPs with a computed score

Metro areas — 50428: not in a metro area · 14227: Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY.

Where these ZIPs differ, domain by domain

Nine domains make up the ZipVitals Score. Each one is placed on the same national scale, and the domains where these ZIPs are furthest apart come first. Higher is healthier in every one.

Compared with the ZIP codes measured across all nine scoring domains — not with all US ZIP codes. How the score works, and who it compares you with ›

Every ranking, bar and gap below is measured against the same national group. Where a ZIP’s line also mentions its state or its metro area, that figure is measured against a different group — its own — so it is context for that one ZIP and never a comparison between them.

Furthest apart first

all 2 ZIPs can be placed on these 9 domains

Climate / Disaster Risk5% of the score 14227 leads · 18-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 77% · 46% in New York, 31% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 59% · 61% in Iowa	2 of 2

Healthcare Access5% of the score 14227 leads · 16-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 68% · 59% in New York, 51% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 52% · 85% in Iowa	2 of 2

Chronic Disease Burden21% of the score 14227 leads · 14-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 54% · 28% in New York, 33% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 40% · 28% in Iowa	2 of 2

Environmental Hazard14% of the score 14227 leads · 11-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 43% · 34% in New York, 20% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 32% · 48% in Iowa	2 of 2

Preventive Care13% of the score 14227 leads · 9-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 96% · 83% in New York, 75% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 87% · 89% in Iowa	2 of 2

Disability7% of the score 14227 leads · 9-point gap
14227Buffalo		healthier than 73% · 45% in New York, 44% in its metro area	1 of 2
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 64% · 57% in Iowa	2 of 2

Social Need / SDOH16% of the score 50428 leads · 2-point gap
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 75% · 88% in Iowa	1 of 2
14227Buffalo		healthier than 73% · 67% in New York, 56% in its metro area	2 of 2

Risk Behavior11% of the score 50428 leads · 1-point gap
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 61% · 88% in Iowa	1 of 2
14227Buffalo		healthier than 60% · 50% in New York, 61% in its metro area	2 of 2

Mental Health8% of the score 50428 leads · 1-point gap
50428Clear Lake		healthier than 80% · 73% in Iowa	1 of 2
14227Buffalo		healthier than 79% · 41% in New York, 72% in its metro area	2 of 2

“Of the score” is the domain’s weight in the ZipVitals Score — a property of the score itself, the same on every ZIP. Not every ZIP sits in a metro area — those show a state figure only. A gap is the distance between the highest and lowest of these ZIPs on that domain’s national scale. Percentages are rounded; higher is healthier in every domain.

Data release 2026 · higher is healthier on every row. How the ZipVitals Score is calculated →

The State rank and Metro rank rows show no “Leads” marker: each ZIP is ranked against the ZIPs in its own state and the ZIPs in its own metro area, so those ranks are not ordered against one another.

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ZipVitalsZipVitals Score · compare

Buffalo vs. Clear Lake

Buffalo 14227 · NYLEADS58.61

Clear Lake 50428 · IA55.38

Data release 2026 · public federal and academic sources · higher is healthier

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