ZIP code
27553
in Manson, North CarolinaPopulation 1,506
38.37/ 100
Ranked #27,804 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 13.3%)
Ranked #727 of 793 North Carolina ZIPs (bottom 8.4%)
Ranks are modeled estimates — ZIPs a few hundred places apart are effectively tied.
What defines this ZIP
Metrics where this ZIP sits in the tails of the national distribution — the ones that most set it apart. Select any tile for its definition and methodology.
Stroke
6.9%
in the top 1.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST97thUS99thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been told by a health professional that they have had a stroke.
Full methodology ›Diabetes
21.9%
in the top 1.8% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been diagnosed with diabetes.
Full methodology ›Self-care disability
8.2%
in the top 2.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST97thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults with difficulty dressing or bathing.
Full methodology ›High blood pressure
52.7%
in the top 1.6% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been told by a health professional that they have high blood pressure.
Full methodology ›Binge drinking
10.1%
in the bottom 1.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST2ndUS1stDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who report binge drinking — five or more drinks on one occasion for men, four or more for women.
Full methodology ›Vision disability
10.2%
in the top 4.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST96thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who are blind or have serious difficulty seeing even with glasses.
Full methodology ›PFOS in drinking water
100%
at the national maximum
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS99thDefinition & source ›
The share of residents served by public water systems where PFOS, one of the most common “forever chemicals,” was detected in EPA testing.
Measured from EPA records for the public water systems that serve this ZIP. Households on private wells — roughly 30% of the US population — are not covered by this measure, and this figure says nothing about their water.
Full methodology ›Fatal road crashes
59.8 per 100,000 residents per year
in the top 2.3% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The annual rate of fatal road crashes per 100,000 residents, pooled over a ten-year window.
A rate per resident population. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the rate to be reliable — about 30% of US ZIPs — no value is published rather than an unstable one; those ZIPs are absent from this comparison, not counted as crash-free.
Full methodology ›Mobility disability
25%
in the top 3.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST96thUS97thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults with serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs.
Full methodology ›Unemployment rate
15.1%
in the top 3.7% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The share of the civilian labor force that is unemployed.
Full methodology ›The read
In overall standing, Manson, North Carolina (ZIP 27553) comes out in the bottom 13.3% nationally (27,804th) and the bottom 8.4% of North Carolina (727th).
The data is direct about where this area carries real strain: modeled stroke stands in the top 1.4% nationally, diabetes lands in the top 1.8% nationally, and self-care disability is in the top 2.5% nationally. Modeled high blood pressure resides in the top 1.6% nationally, modeled vision disability rests in the top 4.5% nationally, and PFOS in drinking water lies at the national maximum. Fatal road crashes sits in the top 2.3% nationally, and modeled mobility disability settles in the top 3.5% nationally. Unemployment registers in the top 3.7% nationally. More encouragingly, modeled binge drinking stands in the bottom 1.4% nationally.
In plain terms, PFOS in drinking water is a common one of the man-made "forever chemicals" that build up in the body and environment instead of breaking down. The nearest healthier ZIP overall is ZIP 23917, just across the boundary.
What’s driving this score
Nine domains make up the ZipVitals Score — here is how this ZIP does on each, and how much each one counts.
Compared with the ZIP codes measured across all nine scoring domains — not with all US ZIP codes.
Lifting this score
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 76%
14%
Preventive Care
healthier than 75%
13%
About typical
Mental Health
healthier than 53%
8%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 3%
21%
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 16%
16%
Risk Behavior
healthier than 27%
11%
Disability
healthier than 5%
7%
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 21%
5%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 32%
5%
Lifting this score
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 61%
14%
Preventive Care
healthier than 68%
13%
Mental Health
healthier than 76%
8%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 4%
21%
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 17%
16%
Risk Behavior
healthier than 9%
11%
Disability
healthier than 5%
7%
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 17%
5%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 17%
5%
“Share” is how much of this ZIP’s score the domain accounts for. Percentages are rounded; higher is healthier in every domain. How the score works, and who it compares you with ›
Findings that name this ZIP
One of our published findings lists this ZIP code. Each finding compares one published measure against a stated benchmark, and names only the ZIP codes whose estimates are reliable enough to rank. See all surprising findings.
Clean environment, heavy chronic burden
Where the environment and chronic illness point in opposite directions
Environmental-hazard standing 76.4; chronic-disease standing 3.1 (bottom 10%) — 73 points apart, cleaner on the environment than it is on chronic illness.
Ranked #857 of the 18,187 ZIP codes this finding names, ordered by the gap from cleanest environment to heaviest chronic burden, highest first.
Nearby & similar ZIPs
Editorially selected — see how this ZIP compares to nearby and similar places.
Nearby
23917
Virginiashares a border
Score 45.23
Closest healthier
23927
Virginiashares a border
Score 46.40
Similar health profile
27857
North Carolina99% similar profile
Score 38.27
How these were chosen: only ZIPs with a published Score appear — a nearby ZIP with too little data to score won’t. Nearby means closest by distance between ZIP boundaries, which can cross state lines. A similar health profile is a close match across the nine Score domains, not similar demographics. Distances are measured between ZIP boundaries — ZIPs that touch share a border. How distance is measured
Evidence
Every measure this page draws on, by source. Collapsed by default — the full data stays in the page for search engines either way.
Health OutcomesCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Arthritis among adults | 36.2% | 33.3–39.3 |
| High blood pressure among adults | 52.7% | 49.4–56.2 |
| Cancer (non-skin) or melanoma among adults | 7.9% | 7.2–8.6 |
| Current asthma among adults | 12.3% | 11.1–13.6 |
| Coronary heart disease among adults | 10.4% | 9.5–11.3 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among adults | 11.9% | 10.6–13.3 |
| Depression among adults | 21.6% | 19.0–24.5 |
| Diagnosed diabetes among adults | 21.9% | 19.7–24.1 |
| High cholesterol among adults who have ever been screened | 41.0% | 37.6–44.7 |
| Obesity among adults | 45.9% | 39.7–52.7 |
| Stroke among adults | 6.9% | 6.4–7.5 |
| All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years | 25.0% | 21.8–28.6 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Current lack of health insurance among adults aged 18-64 years | 12.0% | 10.1–14.1 |
| Taking medicine to control high blood pressure among adults with high blood pressure | 83.6% | 81.8–85.4 |
| Visits to doctor for routine checkup within the past year among adults | 84.8% | 82.7–86.9 |
| Cholesterol screening among adults | 88.8% | 87.4–90.1 |
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 67.3% | 63.1–71.1 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 51.9% | 48.7–55.2 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 79.0% | 73.3–83.8 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking among adults | 10.1% | 8.7–11.9 |
| Current cigarette smoking among adults | 19.5% | 17.0–22.0 |
| No leisure-time physical activity among adults | 35.1% | 30.8–39.3 |
| Short sleep duration among adults | 41.3% | 35.7–46.8 |
Health StatusCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor self-rated health status among adults | 30.1% | 27.0–33.1 |
| Frequent mental distress among adults | 17.5% | 15.8–19.3 |
| Frequent physical distress among adults | 17.2% | 15.5–19.0 |
DisabilityCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability among adults | 17.8% | 15.9–19.7 |
| Any disability among adults | 42.5% | 38.4–46.4 |
| Hearing disability among adults | 9.0% | 8.1–9.9 |
| Independent living disability among adults | 12.9% | 11.5–14.3 |
| Mobility disability among adults | 25.0% | 22.5–27.5 |
| Self-care disability among adults | 8.2% | 7.4–9.1 |
| Vision disability among adults | 10.2% | 9.2–11.2 |
Health-Related Social NeedsCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Lack of social and emotional support among adults | 27.6% | 24.3–31.1 |
| Food insecurity in the past 12 months among adults | 28.6% | 25.3–32.2 |
| Received food stamps in the past 12 months among adults | 28.5% | 25.1–32.3 |
| Housing insecurity in the past 12 months among adults | 19.9% | 17.6–22.6 |
| Lack of reliable transportation in the past 12 months among adults | 14.2% | 12.6–16.0 |
| Loneliness among adults | 34.6% | 30.5–39.0 |
| Utility services shut-off threat in the past 12 months among adults | 15.5% | 13.8–17.6 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | NC median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 17.8% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 13.0% (4.4–25.0%) n=793 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 11.7% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 14.5% (5.7–24.9%) n=794 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 7.8% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 10.4% (3.1–19.8%) n=798 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 20.6% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 22.8% (10.7–53.4%) n=798 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 15.1% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 4.2% (0.0–9.1%) n=796 |
| Households without a vehicle | 9.9% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 3.9% (0.0–10.2%) n=793 |
| Broadband subscription | 77.2% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 87.6% (76.2–96.3%) n=793 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 37.3% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 24.7% (14.1–36.5%) n=793 |
| Homeownership rate | 65.0% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 75.0% (52.7–89.7%) n=793 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 0.0% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 1.4% (0.0–4.5%) n=793 |
| Foreign-born population | 1.0% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 4.2% (0.0–12.9%) n=799 |
| Single-parent households | 63.1% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 51.8% (39.2–70.1%) n=790 |
| Population 65+ | 23.4% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 19.7% (11.1–31.9%) n=799 |
| Median age | 48.2 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 42.5 yr (33.3–55.7) n=797 |
| Median household income | $43,952 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $65,030 ($44,419–$97,111) n=749 |
| Median home value | $275,000 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $223,850 ($113,970–$452,990) n=758 |
| Median gross rent | $774 | $1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670 | $957 ($715–$1,575) n=687 |
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | NC median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 76.9 yr ± 1.08 | 78.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,308 | 77.3 yr (74.6–80.8) n=747 |
About the ± — it’s this estimate’s give-or-take (statisticians call it the standard error). The true life expectancy for this ZIP most likely falls within 1.08 years of 76.9, and it’s very unlikely to be off by more than twice that.
More ZIPs to explore ▾More ZIPs to explore ▴
How these lists were built: they draw only from ZIPs that have a published Score, so ZIPs with too little data to score are not listed. Distance-based lists use distance between ZIP boundaries with no state filter, so an out-of-state ZIP can appear. Statistically similar means a close match across the nine Score domains, not a demographic match: the measure is the cosine similarity between two ZIPs’ domain scores, taken over the domains both ZIPs have data for and only where that overlap covers at least six of the nine — and where no ZIP clears that minimum-overlap floor, that list is left out rather than filled with a weak match. How distance is measured