The local economy of Alabama and its counties, metro areas and cities, from official US government data, plus daily local gas prices for the state, its counties and metro areas.
Unemployment rate
3.4%
+0.6 ptsvs a year ago
Counties: lowest Chambers County 2.8%, highest Perry County 7.0%.
August 2026, seasonally adjusted, preliminary
Average weekly pay
$1,292
+3.6%vs a year ago
2,121,230 jobs at 168,681 business locations.
Q1 2026, all jobs
New homes permitted
21,308
+19.6%this year vs last year
Most in Madison County 4,093, Baldwin County 3,355.
Homes in the last 12 months, to August 2026
People moving in
+16,421
+4.5 per 1,000residents
104,560 moved in and 88,139 moved out. Most newcomers came from Georgia.
Net people, 2022 to 2023, the newest year published
Alabama gas price
$3.99
+$1.23vs a year ago
Counties: lowest Cherokee County $3.85, highest Wilcox County $4.27. Counties and metro areas
Regular, per gallon, Alabama, October 10, 2026
Newest data: -. Not seasonally adjusted: compare with the same month a year earlier. Click a row for the history of that area.
The state, its counties and metro areas, updated daily. A separate series from the weekly survey prices above.
Business locations, employees and payroll by industry, 2023. Click an industry for its US report.
Business locations
106K
+0.6%vs 2022
2023, places with paid employees
Employees
1.82M
+2.5%vs 2022
Largest sector: Manufacturing (14.9%).
2023, mid-March
Annual payroll
$101.0B
Wages and salaries paid during the year.
2023, all industries
Average pay
$55,435
Highest sector: Utilities $120,078.
Per employee per year
Share of Alabama's employees, 2023
| Industry | Employees | Average pay |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 162,959 | $20,060 |
| Employment Services | 97,709 | $43,445 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 90,500 | $64,071 |
| General Merchandise Stores, including Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters | 48,761 | $28,894 |
| Offices of Physicians | 39,416 | $89,642 |
| Religious Organizations | 38,265 | $24,048 |
| Grocery Stores | 37,152 | $26,541 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services | 35,185 | $105,187 |
| Depository Credit Intermediation | 34,889 | $83,855 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 33,312 | $62,024 |
| Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing | 32,953 | $57,063 |
| Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 26,817 | $35,588 |
Most values are changed slightly to protect the privacy of single businesses; a few are withheld and shown as a range. Counties and metro areas have the same numbers in the area card above (Industries).
Offered pay in certified work-visa filings, fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025). Click a company for its jobs and salaries.
In fiscal year 2025, employers offered a median of $87,000 a year in 1,522 certified H-1B filings for jobs in Alabama, up 1.6% from 2024 (US: $120,000). The largest job group was Software Developers. Fiscal year 2026 so far covers filings decided through Jun 30, 2026.
Median offered pay
$87,000
+1.6%vs 2024
Middle half: $68,640 to $118,929.
H-1B, fiscal year 2025
H-1B filings
1,522
+4.5%vs 2024
2,002 positions asked for.
Certified, full-time, fiscal year 2025
Top job group
$95,500
Software Developers, 264 filings.
Median offered pay of the largest job group
Green card jobs
$22,464
-0.5%vs 2024
2,550 PERM filings.
PERM median, fiscal year 2025
Median and middle half of the offers in Alabama, next to the US median. Hover a year for the numbers.
| Job group | Filings | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Software Developers | 264 | $95,500 |
| Physicians, All Other | 122 | $240,120 |
| Data Scientists | 78 | $78,198 |
| Industrial Engineers | 75 | $91,187 |
| Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists | 62 | $66,120 |
| Mechanical Engineers | 53 | $94,411 |
| Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians | 36 | $89,440 |
| Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | 31 | $87,000 |
| Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers | 29 | $80,000 |
| Network and Computer Systems Administrators | 25 | $73,600 |
| Employer | Filings | Cities |
|---|---|---|
| The University of Alabama at Birmingham | 174 | 3 |
| Auburn University | 66 | 2 |
| The University of Alabama | 44 | 1 |
| Bahwan Cybertek Inc. | 39 | 1 |
| USA Healthcare Management, LLC | 38 | 1 |
| University of Alabama Health Services Foundation, PC | 31 | 2 |
| The University of Alabama in Huntsville | 28 | 1 |
| Airbus Americas, Inc. | 23 | 1 |
| Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama | 20 | 5 |
| Regions Bank | 19 | 2 |
| City | Filings | Median pay | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | 475 | $83,580 | $68,000 to $116,546 |
| Montgomery | 148 | $89,068 | $74,637 to $110,000 |
| Mobile | 126 | $101,779 | $78,718 to $225,000 |
| Auburn | 111 | $81,010 | $65,520 to $105,000 |
| Huntsville | 110 | $92,244 | $72,327 to $113,832 |
| Tuscaloosa | 67 | $90,000 | $68,600 to $111,160 |
| Hoover | 63 | $104,100 | $86,694 to $130,501 |
| Florence | 23 | $142,646 | $86,600 to $222,019 |
| Madison | 22 | $116,316 | $74,102 to $140,708 |
| Gadsden | 21 | $76,253 | $68,640 to $204,000 |
Yearly pay that employers offered in certified work-visa filings (H-1B, E-3 and PERM green card), from official public data. Pay is the lower end of the offered pay range, for full-time positions only. These are offered pay figures for positions in work-visa filings, not the pay of all employees. A filing is an offer for a position, not a hire, and one person can appear in several filings. Fiscal years run from October to September. Groups with fewer than 3 filings show counts only. Employers are ranked by filings in the cities of Alabama added up.
Declared disasters and flood insurance claims: what happened, from official public data.
Alabama has had 103 declared disasters and emergencies since 1961, 55 of them since 2000, most often Severe Storm. Flood insurance has paid $1.2 billion on 44,896 claims since 1978; the biggest year was 2004 ($363.3 million).
Declared disasters
55
41 major disasters. Most often Severe Storm (45 since 1961).
Since 2000, all types; 103 since 1961
Flood claims paid
$181.0M
5,571 claims. Biggest year 2004 ($363.3M).
2016 to 2025, flood insurance
Policies in force
46,263
Average premium $869 a year.
2025, flood insurance policies
Most-declared county
28
Mobile County, latest Oct 9, 2026.
Declarations since 2000
Declarations for Alabama, 1961 to today
Claims paid in Alabama by the year of the flood, US dollars
Declarations since 1961
Declarations naming the county since 2000; statewide ones not counted
All years since 1978; policies are a yearly average. Top 15 of 64.
| # | County | Claims | Paid | Policies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baldwin County | 19,745 | $659.5M | 26,311 |
| 2 | Mobile County | 15,117 | $368.6M | 8,309 |
| 3 | Jefferson County | 2,884 | $47.4M | 2,242 |
| 4 | Shelby County | 797 | $19.2M | 803 |
| 5 | Coffee County | 591 | $17.7M | 329 |
| 6 | Escambia County | 384 | $13.8M | 199 |
| 7 | Madison County | 785 | $11.6M | 4,079 |
| 8 | Montgomery County | 417 | $6.66M | 1,556 |
| 9 | Houston County | 195 | $4.12M | 433 |
| 10 | Dale County | 144 | $3.66M | 111 |
| 11 | Tuscaloosa County | 298 | $3.40M | 937 |
| 12 | Morgan County | 200 | $3.04M | 721 |
| 13 | Geneva County | 154 | $2.78M | 110 |
| 14 | Talladega County | 107 | $2.09M | 503 |
| 15 | Dallas County | 196 | $1.95M | 357 |
A declaration opens federal help after a disaster; it can name counties or the whole state. Flood insurance numbers count insured losses only (most homes have no flood insurance) and are not adjusted for inflation; the current year is data so far. For the flood-zone risk of a place, open the area on the real estate map.
Environmental compliance records, workplace safety inspections and greenhouse gas reports of facilities in Alabama, from official public data.
Official public data lists 28,958 facilities in Alabama with records since 2010, 28,873 of them with environmental compliance records. In 2022 to 2026, the largest penalties were at Al Solar A in Lafayette ($1,581,000). 227 large facilities reported 72.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gases in 2023, down 9.6% from 2022.
Facilities with records
28,958
28,873 with environmental records.
Since 2010
Largest penalties
$1.58M
Al Solar A, Lafayette.
One facility, 2022 to 2026
Greenhouse gases
72.2M t
-9.6%vs 2022
227 reporting facilities.
Metric tons CO2e, 2023
Largest emitter
16.6M t
James H Miller Jr, Quinton.
Metric tons CO2e, 2023
| Facility | Penalties | Violations |
|---|---|---|
| Al Solar A Lafayette | $1,581,000 | 0 |
| Schnitzer Southeast Attalla Attalla | $1,550,000 | 0 |
| Schnitzer Southeast LLC Dothan | $1,550,000 | 0 |
| Kronospan USA Eastaboga | $608,000 | 15 |
| Williams Mobile Bay Producer Services, LLC Coden | $596,475 | 0 |
| Abf Freight System, INC. Decatur | $535,000 | 0 |
| Dr Horton Deerfoot Pointe Pinson | $400,000 | 0 |
| Lenox North Northport | $400,000 | 0 |
| Southern Trace: the Ridge Lot #811,849; Phase I Lot #1,2,11-13,29,34-36,47,50,59 Leeds | $400,000 | 0 |
| Lacey'S Grove Hanceville | $400,000 | 0 |
| Facility | Metric tons CO2e |
|---|---|
| James H Miller Jr Quinton | 16,558,381 |
| H. Allen Franklin Generating Plant Smiths | 5,078,422 |
| Barry Bucks | 5,007,385 |
| E C Gaston Wilsonville | 2,996,030 |
| E.B. Harris Electric Generating Plant Prattville | 2,420,045 |
| Morgan Energy Ctr Gen Motors Decatur | 2,220,488 |
| Al Power Central Alabama Generating Station Billingsley | 1,918,313 |
| Hillabee Power Plant Alexander City | 1,621,452 |
| McWilliams Gantt | 1,478,561 |
| Oak Grove Mine Adger | 1,383,465 |
Large facilities in Alabama, metric tons of CO2 equivalent. Hover a year for the number.
Their facilities in Alabama, 2022 to 2026. Click a company for its Risk & Compliance tab.
| Company | Facilities | Penalties | CO2e (t) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Williams Companies, Inc. WMB | 9 | $596K | 681K |
| ArcBest Corporation ARCB | 2 | $535K | - |
| Tyson Foods, Inc. TSN | 10 | $350K | 104K |
| International Paper Company IP | 10 | $325K | 1.22M |
| Honda Motor Co., Ltd. HMC | 1 | $55K | 53K |
| Smurfit Westrock Plc SW | 3 | $32K | 699K |
| Eastman Chemical Company EMN | 1 | $31K | 2,130 |
Official public data on environmental compliance records, workplace safety inspections and greenhouse gas reports, summarized by facility and year since 2010. A record does not mean a site is unsafe today; penalties and violations vary a lot by industry and size. Penalties are the amounts assessed (after settlements), not amounts paid. Recent years can still change.
Cost, students and graduate earnings of the colleges in the state, from official public data.
The newest unemployment rate, pay, new home permits, moves and gas price for Alabama, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Alabama is seasonally adjusted; for its counties, metro areas and cities it is not, so compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Pay covers all jobs that pay into unemployment insurance. Building permits count homes approved to be built, not homes sold. Moves count households by where they filed their tax returns in two years in a row. Daily gas prices are average pump prices for Alabama, its counties and metro areas on the day shown. The weekly gas prices in the explorer come from a separate weekly survey that publishes a price for only some states, so a state without one shows the price of its region there; the two series are never combined.
The unemployment rate in Alabama was 3.4% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 2.8% a year earlier. 2,282,055 people were employed out of a labor force of 2,362,622. Among its counties, Chambers County had the lowest rate (2.8%) and Perry County the highest (7.0%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Alabama was $1,292 in Q1 2026, up 3.6% from a year earlier, across 2,121,230 jobs at 168,681 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 1,731 new homes in Alabama in August 2026 (1,317 single-family and 403 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 14,326, up 19.6% from the same months last year, and 21,308 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Madison County (4,093), Baldwin County (3,355), Jefferson County (2,771) over the last 12 months.
Yes. From 2022 to 2023, 104,560 people moved to Alabama and 88,139 moved away, a net gain of 16,421 (+4.5 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and most people who left went to Georgia, Florida, Tennessee.
Regular gasoline in Alabama averaged $3.99 per gallon on October 10, 2026, up $1.23 from a year earlier. Diesel averaged $5.94. Among its counties, Cherokee County had the lowest regular price ($3.85) and Wilcox County the highest ($4.27).
Manufacturing (272,338 employees), Health Care and Social Assistance (268,162 employees), Retail Trade (238,329 employees) were the largest sectors in Alabama in 2023. In all, 105,720 business locations employed 1,822,666 people at an average pay of $55,435 a year.
$87,000 a year was the median pay offered in 1,522 certified H-1B filings for jobs in Alabama in fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025), up 1.6% from 2024. The middle half of the offers ranged from $68,640 to $118,929. The US median was $120,000. These are offered pay figures in work-visa filings, not the pay of all workers.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham (174), Auburn University (66), The University of Alabama (44), Bahwan Cybertek Inc. (39), USA Healthcare Management, LLC (38) had the most certified H-1B filings for jobs in Alabama in fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025).
Software Developers (264 filings, median $95,500), Physicians, All Other (122 filings, median $240,120), Data Scientists (78 filings, median $78,198) were the largest job groups in certified H-1B filings in Alabama in fiscal year 2025.
$104,100 was the median offered pay in Hoover, the highest among the Alabama cities with the most H-1B filings in fiscal year 2025 (63 filings).
$22,464 a year was the median pay offered in 2,550 certified PERM green card filings for jobs in Alabama in fiscal year 2025.
103 disasters and emergencies have been declared for Alabama since 1961, 55 of them since 2000 (41 major disasters). The most common type is Severe Storm (45 declarations).
Mobile County, with 28 declarations since 2000, followed by Baldwin County (26) and Jefferson County (26). Statewide declarations are not counted for single counties.
$1.2 billion on 44,896 flood insurance claims since 1978. The biggest year was 2004, with $363.3 million paid on 7,269 claims. Baldwin County received the most ($659.5 million).
$869 a year in 2025, across 46,263 flood insurance policies in Alabama. Most homes have no flood insurance; the premium depends on the home's flood risk and coverage.