Postal Codes

38221 ZIP Code

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ZIP code 38221 covers Big Sandy, Tennessee, with a population of about 3,046 and a median household income of $52,109.

Population
3,04628 per square mile
Median age
53.715 points above the US average
Median household income
$52,10922% below the Tennessee median
Poverty rate
18.6%6.2 points above the US average
Typical home value
$193,729up 24.5% in five years
Median rent
$66141% below the Tennessee median
Degree or higher
10.1%24.9 points below the US average
Homeownership
69.1%4.1 points above the US average
Time zone
Central UTC-06:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
22

Where 38221 is

Big Sandy, Tennessee — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population3,046
Median age53.7
Family households64%
Born outside the US1.2%
Speaks a language other than English at home2%
White (non-Hispanic)95.8%
Black (non-Hispanic)0.1%
Asian (non-Hispanic)0.3%
Hispanic or Latino1.7%
Veterans8.5%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$52,109
Income per person$27,998
Poverty rate18.6%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance10.4%

Household income distribution

Under $10k8.7%
$10–15k3.4%
$15–20k3.0%
$20–25k5.8%
$25–30k5.4%
$30–35k5.2%
$35–40k7.8%
$40–45k6.7%
$45–50k3.0%
$50–60k9.1%
$60–75k12.9%
$75–100k18.7%
$100–125k6.1%
$125–150k0.8%
$150–200k2.5%
$200k or more0.9%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed1,330
Mean adjusted gross income$55,583
Returns declaring $200,000 or more2.3%
Returns, under $25k33.1%
Returns, $25k–$50k27.1%
Returns, $50k–$75k16.5%
Returns, $75k–$100k9.0%
Returns, $100k–$200k12.0%
Returns, $200k or more2.3%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$118,600
Median gross rent$661
Rent as a share of household income21.1%
Owner-occupied69.1%
Vacant homes27.3%
Median year built1981

What the homes are

Detached house65.6%
Attached house0.6%
2 to 4 units1.1%
5 to 19 units0.2%
Mobile home32.6%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$193,729as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 5.6%
Typical home value, 5 yearsup 24.5%
Typical home value, 10 yearsup 99.5%
Typical home value since 2000
200920172026$193,729$81,105

$85,738 in 2009 to $193,729 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate8.6%
Bachelor's degree or higher10.1%
High school diploma or higher88%
Works from home14.6%
Drives to work alone75.8%
Takes public transport0%
Commutes 45 minutes or more22.7%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Obesity41.6% 8.2 pts above the national average of 33.4%
Diagnosed diabetes18.3% 6.3 pts above the national average of 12%
Currently smokes23.1% 9.9 pts above the national average of 13.2%
High blood pressure48.6% 14.5 pts above the national average of 34.1%
Fair or poor general health29.3% 9 pts above the national average of 20.3%
No health insurance (18–64)11.9% 0.6 pts above the national average of 11.3%
Depression29.5% 7.6 pts above the national average of 21.9%
No leisure-time physical activity34.3% 8.9 pts above the national average of 25.4%
Arthritis41.2% 16.1 pts above the national average of 25.1%
Binge drinking12.6% 3.4 pts below the national average of 16%
Taking blood pressure medication81.8% 7.1 pts above the national average of 74.7%
Cancer (non-skin)11.2% 3.5 pts above the national average of 7.7%
Current asthma11.3% 0.9 pts above the national average of 10.4%
Coronary heart disease11% 4.8 pts above the national average of 6.2%
Routine check-up in past year80.3% 3.6 pts above the national average of 76.7%
Cholesterol screening87.9% 2 pts above the national average of 85.9%
Cognitive disability19.6% 4.8 pts above the national average of 14.8%
Colorectal screening61.9% 2.4 pts below the national average of 64.3%
COPD13.9% 7.3 pts above the national average of 6.6%
Visited a dentist53% 8.3 pts below the national average of 61.3%
Any disability44.1% 13.4 pts above the national average of 30.7%
Hearing disability11.6% 4.9 pts above the national average of 6.7%
High cholesterol45.1% 8.9 pts above the national average of 36.2%
Independent living disability12.2% 3.8 pts above the national average of 8.4%
Mammography use74% 1.9 pts below the national average of 75.9%
Poor mental health (14+ days)20.2% 3.4 pts above the national average of 16.8%
Mobility disability23.7% 9.7 pts above the national average of 14%
Poor physical health (14+ days)19.8% 6.3 pts above the national average of 13.5%
Self-care disability5.9% 1.9 pts above the national average of 4%
Sleeps under 7 hours39.6% 3.2 pts above the national average of 36.4%
Stroke5.5% 2.1 pts above the national average of 3.4%
All natural teeth lost18.7% 5.7 pts above the national average of 13%
Vision disability7.3% 1.7 pts above the national average of 5.6%
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Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments22
People employed94
Annual payroll$2,038,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 74.2% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingRelatively Moderate
Expected annual loss66.2 out of 100
Community resilience13.2 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Landslide96.4Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave95.3Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Strong wind92.4Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning88.1Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Drought86.8Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake85.6Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Ice storm83.6Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado82.3Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Winter weather77.4Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave70.7Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire62.1Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding61.9Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Hail55.8Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hurricane46.9Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Compared with Tennessee and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPTennesseeUnited States
Median household income$52,109$67,097$78,538
Income per person$27,998$37,866$43,289
Poverty rate18.6%13.8%12.4%
Median home value$118,600$256,800$303,400
Median gross rent$661$1,122$1,348
Homeownership69.1%67%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher10.1%30.4%35%
Unemployment rate8.6%4.7%5.2%
Works from home14.6%11.4%13.5%
Born outside the US1.2%5.9%13.9%
Median age53.738.938.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationBIG SANDY, TN US2.6 km away
Rain in a year52 in
Snow in a year4 in

Average high and low by month

January47°F / 29.2°F3.98 in rain, 1.8 in snow
February52°F / 32.5°F4.65 in rain, 1 in snow
March61.8°F / 38.9°F4.64 in rain, 0.4 in snow
April71.5°F / 47.1°F5.06 in rain, 0.3 in snow
May78.6°F / 57.4°F5.32 in rain
June85.5°F / 65.8°F3.76 in rain
July88.4°F / 69.3°F4.14 in rain
August88°F / 67.6°F3.11 in rain
September82.3°F / 60.4°F3.3 in rain
October71.7°F / 48.3°F3.86 in rain
November60.3°F / 38.4°F4.75 in rain
December49.9°F / 31.8°F5.22 in rain, 0.6 in snow
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
Far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
No vehicle and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

Benton County School District100% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability44more vulnerable than 44% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status70more vulnerable than 70% of US census tracts
Household characteristics44more vulnerable than 44% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status9more vulnerable than 9% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport26more vulnerable than 26% of US census tracts
Walkability5.1 out of 20Least walkable
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

38256 Springville, TN8.5 km away
38333 Eva, TN14.6 km away
38320 Camden, TN19.7 km away
37175 Stewart, TN20.1 km away
38236 Mansfield, TN20.6 km away
38222 Buchanan, TN22.2 km away
38242 Paris, TN23.5 km away
37134 New Johnsonville, TN26.3 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Benton County100% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneCentral (UTC-06:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area108.45 sq mi
Water area15.89 sq mi
Population density28 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude36.2285, -88.0627

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

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