Dale County, Alabama Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Dale County, 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.
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C
Health Below averageHealthier than 80% of counties in Alabama
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D
Income Well below average
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D
Education Well below averageBetter educated than 70% of counties in Alabama
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 49,597 | 5,083,438 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 88.2 | 97.0 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.00% | 0.62% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 36.3 | 38.0 | 37.3 |
| Households | 19,727 | 1,996,169 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Dale County grew by 2.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 49,597 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Dale County is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 21.1% of residents. That is 0.3 points below Alabama as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 10,486 21.1% -0.3 pts
- Millennials 29–44 10,178 20.5% -0.2 pts
- Gen X 45–60 9,524 19.2% -0.7 pts
- Boomers 61–79 8,767 17.7% -0.3 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 50.7% of the people living in Dale County and men 49.3%.
- Women 50.7% Alabama 51.5%
- Men 49.3% Alabama 48.5%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Dale County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Dale County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $55,362 | $64,544 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 3.00% | 4.68% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 6.0% | 4.7% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Dale County is about 14% lower than in Alabama.
Housing
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $67,344 | $160,474 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $888 | $1,007 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 61.9% | 70.2% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Dale County is about 6.3 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $888 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Dale County spend about 38 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 157 hours, about 6.6 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 18.9 | 22.1 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 37.8 | 44.3 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 157 | 184 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,877 | $5,717 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 5.0% | 8.8% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,438 | 8,636 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 958 | 1,193 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Alabama:
Pike County (16.4 min), Houston County (18.3 min), Escambia County (18.5 min).
Slowest:
Blount County (33.2 min), Pickens County (32.5 min), Lowndes County (31.9 min).
The average commute time in Dale County is 19 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
Dale County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 18.1% | 24.9% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.47 | 2.48 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Alabama:
Madison County (0.4), Shelby County (0.3), Lee County (0.3).
Lowest:
Bibb County (0.2), Barbour County (0.2), Wilcox County (0.2).
Health
Dale County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Dale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.5 | 74.7 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 20.5% | 23.4% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 20.3% | 22.1% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Alabama:
Shelby County (0.8), Lee County (0.8), Baldwin County (0.8).
Lowest:
Greene County (0.7), Wilcox County (0.7), Perry County (0.7).
Dale County, AL Compared With Nearby Counties
Dale County, AL is the 3rd largest of the 5 counties compared here, 49,597 residents against a local median of 40,903. Dale County, AL's median home price, at $67,344, runs 35% below the $104,251 typical of the counties around it.
The counties themselves spread $114,896 on median home price, so Dale County, AL sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Dale County, AL has the 5th highest median home price of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dale County, AL | 49,597 | $55,362 #3/5 | $67,344 #5/5 | 18.9 min #2/5 |
| Coffee County, AL | 54,920 | $68,847 | $184,451 | 20.2 min |
| Geneva County, AL | 26,887 | $54,060 | $69,555 | 23.2 min |
| Houston County, AL | 108,140 | $58,687 | $131,410 | 18.3 min |
| Barbour County, AL | 24,643 | $45,867 | $77,092 | 20.3 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Dale County, Alabama.
How many people live in Dale County, Alabama?
About 49,597 people live in Dale County, Alabama, in 19,727 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 36.3, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
Is Dale County, Alabama urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Dale County, Alabama has 88 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is close to the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Dale County, Alabama?
The median home costs 1.2 times the median household income ($67,344 against $55,362), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $888 a month takes about 19% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
What share of adults in Dale County, Alabama have a college degree?
18.1% of adults in Dale County, Alabama hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 6), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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