Is being in an area of Alabama that’s growing quickly a good thing or a bad thing?
Depends on who you ask.
Some want bigger, more exciting cities like Huntsville and Mobile, while others want peace and quiet like in Midfield and Springville, thank you very much.
But today, we’re going to put opinions aside and look at the cold, hard facts — since 2010, which cities in Alabama have grown the fastest.
After getting knee-deep in the Census’s American Community Survey using Saturday Night Science, we emerged with this set of cities in the Heart of Dixie that have people climbing over each other to get in.
Alabama gained a net 23,358 people from other states in the year ending July 2025 — 7th in the nation for domestic migration; the full moving statistics breakdown shows who’s coming and going.
81.5% growth since 2010 · 7,366 net new residents
Located in
Baldwin County, Alabama
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
77.1% growth since 2010 · 10,456 net new residents
Located in
Baldwin County, Alabama
Foley is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States. The 2010 census lists the population of the city as 14,618. Foley is a principal city of the Daphne-Fairhope-Foley Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Baldwin County.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
76.7% growth since 2010 · 7,058 net new residents
Located in
Shelby County, Alabama
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
70.8% growth since 2010 · 7,340 net new residents
Located in
Shelby County, Alabama
Calera is a city in Shelby and Chilton counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is the location of the Shelby County Airport. Calera’s population was 3,158 at the 2000 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
62.1% growth since 2010 · 3,222 net new residents
Located in
Baldwin County, Alabama
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
62.1% growth since 2010 · 9,263 net new residents
Located in
Baldwin County, Alabama
Fairhope is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States, on a sloping plateau, along the cliffs and shoreline of Mobile Bay. The 2010 census lists the population of the city as 15,326. Fairhope is a principal city of the Daphne-Fairhope-Foley micropolitan area, which includes all of Baldwin County. In 2016, Fairhope was named the best small town in the South by Southern Living magazine.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
61.0% growth since 2010 · 4,038 net new residents
Located in
Baldwin County, Alabama
Spanish Fort is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States, located on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. The 2010 census lists the population of the city as 6,798. It is a suburb of Mobile and is part of the Daphne-Fairhope-Foley micropolitan area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
57.9% growth since 2010 · 29,537 net new residents
Located in
Lee County, Alabama
Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama with a 2016 population of 63,118. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. The Auburn-Opelika, AL MSA with a population of 158,991, along with the Columbus, GA-AL MSA and Tuskegee, Alabama, comprises the greater Columbus-Auburn-Opelika, GA-AL CSA, a region home to 501,649 residents.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
49.2% growth since 2010 · 19,813 net new residents
Located in
Madison County, Alabama
Madison is a city located primarily in Madison County, near the northern border of the State of Alabama. Madison extends west into neighboring Limestone County. The city is included in the Huntsville Metropolitan Area, the second-largest in the state, and is also included in the merged Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 42,938. Madison is bordered by Huntsville on all sides.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
43.3% growth since 2010 · 8,064 net new residents
Located in
St. Clair County, Alabama
Trussville is a city in Jefferson and St. Clair counties in the State of Alabama. It is a suburb of Birmingham and part of the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its estimated 2015 population was 21,023.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Alabama’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Alabama’s growth is happening
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Measured The Fastest Growing Cities In the Heart of Dixie for 2026
To figure out which cities are growing the most, we used Saturday Night Science to look at the growth rates for cities since the beginning of the decade, according to the American Community Survey put out by the census every year. Specifically:
- Current Population
- Population in 2010
- Growth rate from 2010 to Current (the latest available data, which came out in Dec 2024)
We ranked all 104 Alabama cities with a population over 5,000 people from highest growth rate to lowest.
The city with the highest growth rate during this time was crowned the fastest-growing city in the Heart of Dixie.
And for those of you who are a little rusty with their statistics, you can calculate the growth rate by the following formula: [Current Population – Population 2010] / [Population 2010].
The data has been updated for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the fastest growing cities in Alabama.
The full plate
Fastest Growing Places In Alabama For 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Population 2010 | Growth | Absolute Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gulf Shores | 16,401 | 9,035 | 81.5% | 7,366 |
| 2 | Foley | 24,026 | 13,570 | 77.1% | 10,456 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 16,260 | 9,202 | 76.7% | 7,058 |
| 4 | Calera | 17,714 | 10,374 | 70.8% | 7,340 |
| 5 | Orange Beach | 8,407 | 5,185 | 62.1% | 3,222 |
| 6 | Fairhope | 24,190 | 14,927 | 62.1% | 9,263 |
| 7 | Spanish Fort | 10,662 | 6,624 | 61.0% | 4,038 |
| 8 | Auburn | 80,594 | 51,057 | 57.9% | 29,537 |
| 9 | Madison | 60,106 | 40,293 | 49.2% | 19,813 |
| 10 | Trussville | 26,673 | 18,609 | 43.3% | 8,064 |
| 11 | Robertsdale | 7,194 | 5,052 | 42.4% | 2,142 |
| 12 | Daphne | 29,453 | 20,817 | 41.5% | 8,636 |
| 13 | Helena | 21,769 | 15,463 | 40.8% | 6,306 |
| 14 | Northport | 31,218 | 22,540 | 38.5% | 8,678 |
| 15 | Athens | 29,002 | 21,059 | 37.7% | 7,943 |
| 16 | Cullman | 19,319 | 14,685 | 31.6% | 4,634 |
| 17 | Springville | 5,081 | 3,872 | 31.2% | 1,209 |
| 18 | Muscle Shoals | 16,951 | 12,986 | 30.5% | 3,965 |
| 19 | Huntsville | 222,791 | 175,416 | 27.0% | 47,375 |
| 20 | Opelika | 32,820 | 25,867 | 26.9% | 6,953 |
| 21 | Tuscaloosa | 111,038 | 87,663 | 26.7% | 23,375 |
| 22 | Saraland | 16,404 | 13,172 | 24.5% | 3,232 |
| 23 | Montevallo | 7,556 | 6,101 | 23.8% | 1,455 |
| 24 | Gardendale | 16,534 | 13,420 | 23.2% | 3,114 |
| 25 | Prattville | 39,482 | 32,122 | 22.9% | 7,360 |
| 26 | Millbrook | 17,189 | 14,034 | 22.5% | 3,155 |
| 27 | Jacksonville | 14,437 | 11,791 | 22.4% | 2,646 |
| 28 | Pelham | 24,827 | 20,346 | 22.0% | 4,481 |
| 29 | Phenix City | 38,499 | 31,704 | 21.4% | 6,795 |
| 30 | Moody | 13,488 | 11,138 | 21.1% | 2,350 |
| 31 | Lincoln | 7,305 | 6,065 | 20.4% | 1,240 |
| 32 | Headland | 5,217 | 4,407 | 18.4% | 810 |
| 33 | Boaz | 10,814 | 9,148 | 18.2% | 1,666 |
| 34 | Hoover | 92,642 | 78,543 | 18.0% | 14,099 |
| 35 | Enterprise | 29,505 | 25,285 | 16.7% | 4,220 |
| 36 | Rainsville | 5,702 | 4,895 | 16.5% | 807 |
| 37 | Fultondale | 9,384 | 8,093 | 16.0% | 1,291 |
| 38 | Vestavia Hills | 38,616 | 33,305 | 15.9% | 5,311 |
| 39 | Alabaster | 33,917 | 29,550 | 14.8% | 4,367 |
| 40 | Wetumpka | 7,437 | 6,480 | 14.8% | 957 |
| 41 | Hartselle | 15,847 | 13,840 | 14.5% | 2,007 |
| 42 | Southside | 9,483 | 8,340 | 13.7% | 1,143 |
| 43 | Satsuma | 6,822 | 6,057 | 12.6% | 765 |
| 44 | Russellville | 10,799 | 9,598 | 12.5% | 1,201 |
| 45 | Albertville | 22,813 | 20,445 | 11.6% | 2,368 |
| 46 | Dothan | 71,514 | 64,299 | 11.2% | 7,215 |
| 47 | Pell City | 13,587 | 12,234 | 11.1% | 1,353 |
| 48 | Homewood | 27,829 | 25,078 | 11.0% | 2,751 |
| 49 | Irondale | 13,464 | 12,180 | 10.5% | 1,284 |
| 50 | Guntersville | 8,916 | 8,077 | 10.4% | 839 |
| 51 | Smiths Station | 5,496 | 5,001 | 9.9% | 495 |
| 52 | Pinson | 7,832 | 7,143 | 9.6% | 689 |
| 53 | Tallassee | 5,134 | 4,683 | 9.6% | 451 |
| 54 | Tuscumbia | 9,115 | 8,315 | 9.6% | 800 |
| 55 | Arab | 8,679 | 7,928 | 9.5% | 751 |
| 56 | Rainbow City | 10,284 | 9,396 | 9.5% | 888 |
| 57 | Mountain Brook | 22,029 | 20,381 | 8.1% | 1,648 |
| 58 | Oneonta | 6,971 | 6,453 | 8.0% | 518 |
| 59 | Valley | 10,277 | 9,527 | 7.9% | 750 |
| 60 | Clay | 10,273 | 9,527 | 7.8% | 746 |
| 61 | Fort Payne | 14,927 | 13,862 | 7.7% | 1,065 |
| 62 | Florence | 41,701 | 38,821 | 7.4% | 2,880 |
| 63 | Leeds | 12,028 | 11,314 | 6.3% | 714 |
| 64 | Scottsboro | 15,712 | 14,795 | 6.2% | 917 |
| 65 | Oxford | 22,063 | 20,967 | 5.2% | 1,096 |
| 66 | Glencoe | 5,353 | 5,107 | 4.8% | 246 |
| 67 | Clanton | 8,958 | 8,554 | 4.7% | 404 |
| 68 | Mobile | 203,416 | 195,619 | 4.0% | 7,797 |
| 69 | Decatur | 57,361 | 55,253 | 3.8% | 2,108 |
| 70 | Chickasaw | 6,332 | 6,128 | 3.3% | 204 |
| 71 | Bay Minette | 8,295 | 8,052 | 3.0% | 243 |
| 72 | Troy | 17,716 | 17,207 | 3.0% | 509 |
| 73 | Hueytown | 16,414 | 16,032 | 2.4% | 382 |
| 74 | Sheffield | 9,340 | 9,141 | 2.2% | 199 |
| 75 | Lanett | 6,814 | 6,722 | 1.4% | 92 |
| 76 | Jasper | 14,442 | 14,307 | 0.9% | 135 |
| 77 | Hamilton | 6,922 | 6,868 | 0.8% | 54 |
| 78 | Opp | 6,709 | 6,701 | 0.1% | 8 |
| 79 | Alexander City | 14,606 | 14,879 | -1.8% | -273 |
| 80 | Andalusia | 8,766 | 8,998 | -2.6% | -232 |
| 81 | Montgomery | 197,494 | 204,788 | -3.6% | -7,294 |
| 82 | Sylacauga | 12,309 | 12,789 | -3.8% | -480 |
| 83 | Brewton | 5,186 | 5,391 | -3.8% | -205 |
| 84 | Ozark | 14,327 | 14,909 | -3.9% | -582 |
| 85 | Eufaula | 12,584 | 13,228 | -4.9% | -644 |
| 86 | Center Point | 15,914 | 16,810 | -5.3% | -896 |
| 87 | Attalla | 5,775 | 6,143 | -6.0% | -368 |
| 88 | Pleasant Grove | 9,442 | 10,048 | -6.0% | -606 |
| 89 | Midfield | 5,045 | 5,384 | -6.3% | -339 |
| 90 | Talladega | 14,760 | 15,993 | -7.7% | -1,233 |
| 91 | Birmingham | 198,173 | 216,392 | -8.4% | -18,219 |
| 92 | Anniston | 21,271 | 23,297 | -8.7% | -2,026 |
| 93 | Bessemer | 25,400 | 27,824 | -8.7% | -2,424 |
| 94 | Demopolis | 6,908 | 7,570 | -8.7% | -662 |
| 95 | Tarrant | 5,925 | 6,524 | -9.2% | -599 |
| 96 | Greenville | 7,163 | 7,924 | -9.6% | -761 |
| 97 | Gadsden | 33,374 | 37,162 | -10.2% | -3,788 |
| 98 | Monroeville | 5,802 | 6,589 | -11.9% | -787 |
| 99 | Tuskegee | 8,938 | 10,189 | -12.3% | -1,251 |
| 100 | Roanoke | 5,336 | 6,154 | -13.3% | -818 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS, 2010-current. 104 Alabama cities with more than 5,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: These Places Grew Up So Fast In Alabama, You Know?
So there you have it, the fastest growing cities in Alabama are led by Gulf Shores which has been growing at a blistering pace this decade relative to other cities and towns around the state.
The fastest-growing cities in Alabama are Gulf Shores, Foley, Chelsea, Calera, Orange Beach, Fairhope, Spanish Fort, Auburn, Madison, and Trussville.
It’ll be interesting to see if these places can keep growing at the same rate over the next couple of years. We’ll be here to let you know! Not sold on Alabama? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Fastest Growing Cities In Alabama FAQs
What is the fastest-growing city in Alabama?
Gulf Shores is the fastest-growing city in Alabama for 2026, based on population change since 2010. Foley and Chelsea are growing nearly as fast.
What are the top 10 fastest-growing cities in Alabama?
The fastest-growing cities in Alabama are Gulf Shores, Foley, Chelsea, Calera, Orange Beach, Fairhope, Spanish Fort, Auburn, Madison, and Trussville. We ranked all 104 cities with more than 5,000 residents.
How do you measure growth?
Growth is the percent change in population from the 2010 Census to the latest American Community Survey estimates. No projections, no vibes — just how many more people actually live there now.
What is the slowest-growing city on the list?
Prichard posts the smallest population change of the 104 Alabama cities we ranked. Slow growth is not automatically bad news, but the momentum is clearly elsewhere.
Do small towns count in this ranking?
Only places with more than 5,000 residents qualify, which keeps one new subdivision from turning a tiny town into a statistical rocket. 104 Alabama cities cleared that bar this year.
