Largest Cities in Alabama: Ranked by Population

The largest city in Alabama in our data is Birmingham, AL, with an estimated 739,573 people, followed by Huntsville, AL (319,249) and Mobile, AL (315,502). This list ranks the top 50 places among the 118 Alabama communities with at least 5,000 residents.

What are the top 50 in Alabama?

How big are the largest cities in Alabama?

Of the 118 places with pages, 5 have more than 100,000 residents, 21 have between 25,000 and 100,000, and 92 have fewer than 25,000. The median place has about 12,292 people. The ten largest places account for about 57% of the combined population of all pages, which shows how concentrated the state's population is across communities. Jefferson County contributes 9 of the top 50.

Which counties do the top 50 belong to?

The 50 places on this list are spread across 28 counties of Alabama. Jefferson County has 9 (Birmingham, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Bessemer, Homewood, Trussville, Mountain Brook, Center); Mobile County has 4 (Mobile, Prichard, Tillmans Corner, Saraland); Shelby County has 4 (Alabaster, Pelham, Helena, Calera). Counties with several entries are usually centers of a metropolitan area, where one large city is surrounded by many suburbs that each pass the 5,000-resident threshold.

How does Alabama compare with the rest of the country?

The median Alabama place with a page has about 12,292 residents, compared with about 13,459 nationwide, so the state's typical community is about the same size as the national typical place. Birmingham, AL ranks 62nd among all US places by estimated population in our data. The state has 581 communities in total, of which 118 reach 5,000 residents. See the national ranking of the largest cities for comparison.

Quick answers about Alabama cities

• Which is the largest city in Alabama? Birmingham (739,573 people).
• How many Alabama cities have more than 100,000 people? 5 in our data.
• How many have 25,000 to 100,000? 21.
• What is the typical size? About 12,292 residents for a place with a page.

How is this ranking made?

The data comes from the SimpleMaps US Cities Database, which gives each place an estimated population and a density in people per square kilometer. We convert density to people per square mile and rank the places with at least 5,000 residents. Boundaries matter: a city that includes large parks or farmland scores lower on density than a compact city of the same size, and population estimates can include areas that share a city's ZIP codes. Read why population figures differ and how density is calculated before you quote a number.

Where to go next

Rankings use dataset estimates, not official counts.