Birmingham, Alabama Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Birmingham, AL Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
-
C
Health Below average
-
D
Income Well below average
-
C
Education Below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 207,255 | 5,083,438 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 1385.4 | 97.0 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.74% | 0.62% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 37.1 | 38.0 | 37.3 |
| Households | 91,080 | 1,996,169 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Birmingham declined by 12.3% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 207,255 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Birmingham is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 23.6% of residents. That is 2.1 points above Alabama as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 48,972 23.6% +2.1 pts
- Millennials 29–44 45,639 22.0% +1.3 pts
- Gen X 45–60 39,816 19.2% -0.7 pts
- Boomers 61–79 34,749 16.8% -1.2 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Alabama, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 52.5% of the people living in Birmingham and men 47.5%.
- Women 52.5% Alabama 51.5%
- Men 47.5% Alabama 48.5%
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100% of everyone living in Birmingham
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Economy
Birmingham has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $49,175 | $64,544 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 4.49% | 4.68% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.7% | 4.7% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Birmingham is about 24% lower than in Alabama.
Housing
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $88,729 | $160,474 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,097 | $1,007 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 49.1% | 70.2% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Birmingham is about 6.7 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,097 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Birmingham spend about 41 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 172 hours, about 7.2 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 20.6 | 22.1 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 41.2 | 44.3 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 172 | 184 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,325 | $5,717 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 10.4% | 8.8% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 22,721 | 8,636 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 2,854 | 1,193 | 1,355 |
The average commute time in Birmingham is 21 minutes, shorter than the 22 minutes in Alabama.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Birmingham has a education index of C, which means it is somewhat educated.
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 28.1% | 24.9% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.16 | 2.48 | 2.53 |
Health
Birmingham has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Birmingham | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 72.3 | 74.7 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 25.7% | 23.4% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 20.2% | 22.1% | 19.0% |
Birmingham, AL Compared With Nearby Cities
Birmingham, AL is the largest of the 4 cities compared here, 207,255 residents against a local median of 27,106. The measure that sets Birmingham, AL apart most is median home price: $88,729, 72% below the local median of $312,505.
Median household income tells the same story from another angle: $49,175 against a local median of $112,165, 56% below it. Every measure here with a clear better direction points the same way, and it is the wrong way: Birmingham, AL reads weaker than its neighbours on all of them. The cities themselves sit within $10,802 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Birmingham, AL, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Birmingham, AL has the 4th highest median home price of the 4 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham, AL | 207,255 | $49,175 #4/4 | $88,729 #4/4 | 20.6 min #4/4 |
| Homewood, AL | 27,106 | $89,778 | $303,414 | 16.5 min |
| Mountain Brook, AL | 23,287 | $160,102 | $312,505 | 17.3 min |
| Vestavia Hills, AL | 32,245 | $112,165 | $314,215 | 18.4 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Birmingham, Alabama.
How many people live in Birmingham, Alabama?
About 207,255 people live in Birmingham, Alabama, in 91,080 households of 2.2 people on average. The median age is 37.1, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
Is Birmingham, Alabama urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Birmingham, Alabama has 1,385 people per square mile, a density typical of urban and suburban areas. That is about 16 times the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Birmingham, Alabama?
The median home costs 1.8 times the median household income ($88,729 against $49,175), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $1,097 a month takes about 27% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
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