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Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and Alabama does this very well. Families love the Heart Of Dixie's beaches, midlands, and mountains as tourists before moving here and calling it home.
But before you decide to relocate, you have to do some research into the exact cost of living around the state -- and that's how we're going to help you.
These are the places in Alabama that cost a pretty penny -- the most expensive cities in the state.
After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Alabama for 2021.
So where is the most expensive place to live in Alabama? That would be Gulf Shores.
the 2015-2019 American Community Survey for the 103 places in Alabama with more than 5,000 people.
Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in Alabama for 2021:
What's the most expensive place to live in Alabama? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Gulf Shores is the most expensive place to live in Alabama.
So hopefully Attalla (the cheapest place to live in Alabama) can show these guys how to live on a budget in the coming years. Read on for how these places had costs rise faster than inflation.
And if you already knew these places were expensive, check out some more reading about Alabama and the most expensive cities in the country:
The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Alabama For 2021
GulfShoresAlBeachJuly08
| GFDL/10
Population: 12,267
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.5x (3rd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 49.2x (12th most expensive)
More on Gulf Shores: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Gulf Shores comes in at $53,476 and the median home value is $243,100 for 2021.
/10
Population: 64,054
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.6x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 53.5x (2most expensive)
More on Auburn: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Auburn comes in at $47,318 and the median home value is $266,200 for 2021.
/10
Population: 18,533
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.1x (8th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 51.0x (19th most expensive)
More on Foley: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Foley comes in at $43,614 and the median home value is $177,600 for 2021.
/10
Population: 19,112
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.9x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 45.9x (9th most expensive)
More on Troy: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Troy comes in at $31,515 and the median home value is $154,000 for 2021.
/10
Population: 99,390
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.0x (11th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 53.6x (22nd most expensive)
More on Tuscaloosa: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Tuscaloosa comes in at $45,268 and the median home value is $178,900 for 2021.
/10
Population: 21,083
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.0x (10th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 62.9x (47th most expensive)
More on Fairhope: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Fairhope comes in at $75,197 and the median home value is $299,200 for 2021.
/10
Population: 6,568
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 6)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.9x (12th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 59.6x (38th most expensive)
More on Oneonta: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Oneonta comes in at $39,669 and the median home value is $156,300 for 2021.
/10
Population: 13,781
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (20th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 63.7x (52nd most expensive)
More on Pell City: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Pell City comes in at $54,674 and the median home value is $183,800 for 2021.
/10
Population: 6,807
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.3x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 50.8x (18th most expensive)
More on Demopolis: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Demopolis comes in at $27,279 and the median home value is $117,400 for 2021.
/10
Population: 25,534
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.1x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 75.7x (87th most expensive)
More on Homewood: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Homewood comes in at $84,157 and the median home value is $347,800 for 2021.
How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Heart of Dixie For 2021
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:
- How much do money do I make?
- How much do I have spend to live there?
You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.
For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing it's actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.
With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2015-2019 around incomes and costs. They are:
- Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
- Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
- Median Home Price
We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).
You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Alabama to figure out which is the most expensive.
What you are left with is a "Cost of Living Index" by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.
So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 103 places in Alabama that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in Alabama according to the data is Gulf Shores. You can download the data here.
Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Alabama For 2021
Well there you have it, the places in Alabama that have the highest cost of living, with Gulf Shores ranking as the most expensive city in the Heart of Dixie.
Here's a look at the most affordable cities in Alabama according to the data:
- Attalla
- Russellville
- Roanoke
For more Alabama reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Alabama
- Cheapest Places To Live In Alabama
- Most Dangerous Cities In Alabama
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Alabama
- Safest Places In Alabama
- Worst Places To Live In Alabama
Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In Alabama
| Rank | City | ExpensiveScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gulf Shores | 8.67 |
| 2 | Auburn | 10.0 |
| 3 | Foley | 16.0 |
| 4 | Troy | 16.33 |
| 5 | Tuscaloosa | 17.67 |
| 6 | Fairhope | 20.67 |
| 7 | Oneonta | 27.67 |
| 8 | Pell City | 30.0 |
| 9 | Demopolis | 31.33 |
| 10 | Homewood | 32.0 |
| 11 | Rainbow City | 32.67 |
| 12 | Guntersville | 34.0 |
| 13 | Huntsville | 34.0 |
| 14 | Orange Beach | 34.33 |
| 15 | Daphne | 35.0 |
| 16 | Eufaula | 35.67 |
| 17 | Wetumpka | 36.67 |
| 18 | Mountain Brook | 36.67 |
| 19 | Atmore | 37.0 |
| 20 | Sylacauga | 37.33 |
| 21 | Phenix City | 37.67 |
| 22 | Smiths Station | 37.67 |
| 23 | Monroeville | 38.67 |
| 24 | Dothan | 39.0 |
| 25 | Montevallo | 39.0 |
| 26 | Jacksonville | 39.67 |
| 27 | Prattville | 39.67 |
| 28 | Florence | 40.33 |
| 29 | Vestavia Hills | 40.67 |
| 30 | Lanett | 40.67 |
| 31 | Robertsdale | 41.33 |
| 32 | Selma | 41.67 |
| 33 | Hoover | 42.0 |
| 34 | Opelika | 42.33 |
| 35 | Mobile | 42.33 |
| 36 | Spanish Fort | 44.67 |
| 37 | Rainsville | 45.67 |
| 38 | Trussville | 46.33 |
| 39 | Northport | 47.33 |
| 40 | Talladega | 47.67 |
| 41 | Greenville | 49.0 |
| 42 | Pike Road | 49.67 |
| 43 | Andalusia | 50.0 |
| 44 | Irondale | 50.33 |
| 45 | Enterprise | 50.33 |
| 46 | Bay Minette | 51.33 |
| 47 | Bessemer | 52.67 |
| 48 | Clanton | 53.33 |
| 49 | Chickasaw | 53.67 |
| 50 | Chelsea | 53.67 |
| 51 | Leeds | 53.67 |
| 52 | Tuskegee | 54.0 |
| 53 | Calera | 54.33 |
| 54 | Athens | 55.0 |
| 55 | Anniston | 55.0 |
| 56 | Helena | 55.33 |
| 57 | Fort Payne | 55.33 |
| 58 | Tarrant | 56.0 |
| 59 | Montgomery | 56.0 |
| 60 | Pleasant Grove | 56.33 |
| 61 | Millbrook | 57.67 |
| 62 | Jasper | 57.67 |
| 63 | Alexander City | 57.67 |
| 64 | Sheffield | 57.67 |
| 65 | Arab | 58.0 |
| 66 | Cullman | 58.33 |
| 67 | Birmingham | 58.67 |
| 68 | Ozark | 59.67 |
| 69 | Pelham | 59.67 |
| 70 | Madison | 60.67 |
| 71 | Moody | 61.33 |
| 72 | Fultondale | 61.67 |
| 73 | Fairfield | 62.0 |
| 74 | Saraland | 63.33 |
| 75 | Center Point | 63.67 |
| 76 | Oxford | 64.33 |
| 77 | Decatur | 64.33 |
| 78 | Satsuma | 64.67 |
| 79 | Prichard | 64.67 |
| 80 | Scottsboro | 65.33 |
| 81 | Hueytown | 66.33 |
| 82 | Albertville | 66.67 |
| 83 | Alabaster | 67.0 |
| 84 | Gardendale | 67.67 |
| 85 | Tuscumbia | 67.67 |
| 86 | Brewton | 68.33 |
| 87 | Boaz | 68.67 |
| 88 | Midfield | 69.17 |
| 89 | Glencoe | 69.33 |
| 90 | Gadsden | 69.5 |
| 91 | Muscle Shoals | 70.33 |
| 92 | Opp | 72.67 |
| 93 | Hartselle | 73.33 |
| 94 | Hamilton | 75.0 |
| 95 | Daleville | 75.33 |
| 96 | Southside | 75.33 |
| 97 | Clay | 77.67 |
| 98 | Valley | 78.33 |
| 99 | Pinson | 83.33 |
| 100 | Lincoln | 83.33 |
