Alexander City, AL

Micro Area Profile

40,938 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Alexander City, AL micropolitan area.

49out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 21% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
Opportunity602nd of 835 metro and micro areas measured40
Schools603rd of 695 metro and micro areas measured20
GrowthTop 35% of 834 metro and micro areas measured59
Housing affordabilityTop 6% of 835 metro and micro areas measured86
ClimateTop 26% of 835 metro and micro areas measured73
Physical resilience676th of 835 metro and micro areas measured29
Access535th of 835 metro and micro areas measured70
Economic stability712th of 835 metro and micro areas measured21
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable metro and micro areas measured: unemployment is 3.9% and the Opportunity signal places Alexander City in the bottom 28%.

In the public schools here, 40% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 17.8 students for every teacher.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 250 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 20% on the prior year.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
40,938
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$59,356
Bottom 25% nationally
Density
57/sq mi
716.5 sq mi of land
Median age
45.6
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Alabama
Nearest major airport
MGM
52 mi · Montgomery Rgnl (Dannelly Fld)
Median home value
$158,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.9%, lower than in 59% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment fell 2.0% over the past year, to 15,761 employed residents.

Median household income of $59,356 is lower than in 75% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$4,2752024 ACS 5-Year$59,356Bottom 25%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,9182024 ACS 5-Year$33,762Bottom 38%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year16.4%Bottom 22%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.3 min2024 ACS 5-Year26.6 minBottom 25%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year20.3%Bottom 26%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year84.4%95th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202615,761Bottom 14%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+0.3%Top 43%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−2.0%Bottom 23%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202616,40814th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year71.6%Bottom 21%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year0.3%48th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.8%Bottom 8%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20263.9%Top 41%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year5.3%15th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/075.02.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.9% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

40% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 39% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 17.8 students for every full-time teacher across 10 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
11
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
17.8
across 10 of them
Math proficiency
39.6%
Bottom 17% in Alabama
Reading proficiency
38.7%
Bottom 26% in Alabama
All 11 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Benjamin Russell High SchoolAlexander City85215.540%46%
Horseshoe Bend High SchoolTallapoosa County77617.641%43%
Jim Pearson Elementary SchoolAlexander City70417.2——
Dadeville Elementary SchoolTallapoosa County57117.325%29%
Dadeville High SchoolTallapoosa County53421.436%37%
Reeltown High SchoolTallapoosa County49519.837%32%
Reeltown Elementary SchoolTallapoosa County44617.252%45%
Nathaniel H Stephens Elementary SchoolAlexander City43621.838%36%
Alexander City Middle SchoolAlexander City43017.247%38%
William L Radney Elementary SchoolAlexander City41418.045%36%
Edward Bell Career Technical CenterTallapoosa County0———

60.0% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Alabama’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $481 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.30% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $857, some 12% above the $765 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $857 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $34,300 a year, about 58% of the median household income here of $59,356.

The typical renter household here spends 24% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $765 a month.

A median home at $158,500 costs 2.4 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $67,365, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
24.2%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.4×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$857
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$765
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$158,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Alexander City’s median household income of $59,356, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year2.4Top 33%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year76.1%84th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±372024 ACS 5-Year23,16135th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$663Top 2%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,030Top 1%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$857Top 3%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$332024 ACS 5-Year$765Top 7%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$13,0932024 ACS 5-Year$158,50021st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$442024 ACS 5-Year$4812nd percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$4,2392024 ACS 5-Year$67,365Bottom 15%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.04%2024 ACS 5-Year0.30%2nd percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year24.2%Top 6%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±3602024 ACS 5-Year3,43376th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year14.8%93rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year11.5%81st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±4582024 ACS 5-Year6,08559th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

59/ 100
Top 35% of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has fallen 1% since 2020, to 40,699 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 250 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

At 6.1 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
250
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.1
Top 18% nationally
Year over year
+20%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202441k41k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 29°F.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station CAMP HILL 2NW, 8.8 miles from this location.

Precipitation

MetricValueSource period
Average January low1991-2020 Normals29°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals91°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals36°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

29 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and heat wave, with inland flooding alone responsible for 67% of it. Heat wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Inland floodingElevated
HurricaneModerate
LandslideModerate
TornadoModerate
EarthquakeModerate
LightningModerate

Low or minimal exposure: heat wave, wildfire, cold wave, strong wind, drought, hail, ice storm, winter weather, tsunami, volcanic activity, coastal flooding, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Montgomery Rgnl (Dannelly Fld) at 52 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year83.9%Bottom 13%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle52 miBottom 35%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle3Bottom 35%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year11.2%Bottom 23%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Montgomery Rgnl (Dannelly Fld)MGM52 mi9,020 ft
Birmingham-Shuttlesworth IntlBHM73 mi12,007 ft
Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta IntlATL96 mi12,390 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
49
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

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