Article Table Of Contents
Big city living isn't for everyone--but at the same time, urban areas certainly have their perks.
There's the culture, the food, the arts, the food, the energy, and you know, the food. But there are drawbacks. There's traffic, expensive parking, expensive housing--pretty much, expensive everything, depending on which big city you're looking at.
But that's where the suburbs come in--they have all of the benefits of being near big cities, without actually having to be big cities.
Of course, not all suburbs of Birmingham are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. So without further ado...
Here are the 10 best suburbs to live around Birmingham for 2021:
What's the best suburb of Birmingham? Mountain Brook ranks as the best suburb of Birmingham for 2021 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Mountain Brook, you're probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We'll tell you what makes each of these 10 Birmingham 'burbs better than the rest--but first, a bit about our methodology.
Note: This result may differ from our state wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a larger selection of suburbs.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Alabama:
The 10 Best Birmingham Suburbs To Live For 2021
/10
Population: 20,436
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $152,355
Unemployment Rate: 1.7%
Poverty Rate: 3.0%
More on Mountain Brook: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Mountain Brook is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Birmingham area. We'll tell you the good about "Awesome Mountain Brook."
Everyone here is rich; families average $152,355 a year, which is the highest in the Birmingham region. And only 1.71% are out of work. Homes average more than $628,800 each.
/10
Population: 34,307
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $109,485
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 3.9%
More on Vestavia Hills: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Vestavia Hills is the second best 'burb we looked at near Birmingham for 2021.
It ranks 2nd for incomes in the area and only 3.39% of residents lack insurance, good for 9th best.
/10
Population: 18,463
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 1)
Median Income: $87,781
Unemployment Rate: 1.2%
Poverty Rate: 3.9%
More on Helena: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Here in Helena, it's really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you'll see in the Birmingham metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Helena.
/10
Population: 25,534
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 3)
Median Income: $84,157
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Homewood: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Homewood ranks as the 4th best suburb of Birmingham for 2021.
You won't find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Homewood and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 3,444
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Median Income: $82,647
Unemployment Rate: 1.1%
Poverty Rate: 5.5%
More on Kimberly: Real Estate | Data
Coming in as the fifth best is Kimberly.
Kimberly gets kudos for having the 9th most expensive homes in the Birmingham area, where houses sell for an average of $195,800. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 21,876
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Median Income: $97,226
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.2%
More on Trussville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Trussville is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here's why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 3.31% which is 15th best in the area.
According to online reports, Trussville is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Birmingham area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 4,257
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 2)
Median Income: $83,488
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 2.2%
More on Springville: Real Estate | Data
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Springville.
Springville schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it's only 23.3 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 85,175
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 2)
Median Income: $89,452
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 6.2%
More on Hoover: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Hoover is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 5.35% of people lack insurance, good for 18th in the area.
/10
Population: 2,452
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 4)
Median Income: $82,455
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%
Poverty Rate: 3.4%
More on Lake View: Real Estate | Data
Is 'Everything Better In Lake View?'
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it's really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 13,098
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 2)
Median Income: $97,727
Unemployment Rate: 4.5%
Poverty Rate: 3.5%
More on Chelsea: Real Estate | Data | Photos
And rounding out the top ten for 2021 is Chelsea.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It's far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Birmingham for 2021
Figuring out the best suburbs around Birmingham was pretty simple; we just needed to list several things that people like, and then find out which cities have the most of those things.
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:
- Low unemployment rate
- High Median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
Then we used the newest American Community Survey data for 2015-2019 to research each suburb.
FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Birmingham.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 40 suburbs to evaluate around Birmingham.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 40 in each category, where 1 was the "best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.
And finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index the "Best Suburb near Birmingham." We're lookin' at you, Mountain Brook. You can download the data here.
Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best of the best. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Welcome to the Best Birmingham 'Burbs of 2021
We said it once and we'll say it again--life in the big city isn't for everyone. At least not all the time.
So if you're hankering for some of the amenities of a larger city like Birmingham, but don't want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might just be for you.
For more Alabama reading, check out:
Detailed List Of The Best Birmingham Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mountain Brook, AL | 20,436 |
| 2 | Vestavia Hills, AL | 34,307 |
| 3 | Helena, AL | 18,463 |
| 4 | Homewood, AL | 25,534 |
| 5 | Kimberly, AL | 3,444 |
| 6 | Trussville, AL | 21,876 |
| 7 | Springville, AL | 4,257 |
| 8 | Hoover, AL | 85,175 |
| 9 | Lake View, AL | 2,452 |
| 10 | Chelsea, AL | 13,098 |
| 11 | Clay, AL | 9,888 |
| 12 | Odenville, AL | 3,848 |
| 13 | Margaret, AL | 4,819 |
| 14 | Pleasant Grove, AL | 9,651 |
| 15 | Pelham, AL | 23,428 |
| 16 | Calera, AL | 13,856 |
| 17 | Pinson, AL | 7,109 |
| 18 | Gardendale, AL | 14,016 |
| 19 | Alabaster, AL | 33,176 |
| 20 | Argo, AL | 4,220 |
| 21 | Moody, AL | 12,840 |
| 22 | Leeds, AL | 12,600 |
| 23 | Mount Olive, AL | 2,062 |
| 24 | Hueytown, AL | 15,540 |
| 25 | Fultondale, AL | 9,179 |
| 26 | Montevallo, AL | 6,693 |
| 27 | Irondale, AL | 12,637 |
| 28 | Wilsonville, AL | 2,268 |
| 29 | Fairfield, AL | 10,720 |
| 30 | Sumiton, AL | 2,472 |
| 31 | Center Point, AL | 16,353 |
| 32 | Columbiana, AL | 4,481 |
| 33 | Midfield, AL | 5,085 |
| 34 | Warrior, AL | 3,214 |
| 35 | Adamsville, AL | 4,340 |
| 36 | Brighton, AL | 2,810 |
| 37 | Bessemer, AL | 26,680 |
| 38 | Tarrant, AL | 6,174 |
| 39 | Dora, AL | 2,209 |
| 40 | Cordova, AL | 2,006 |
