The 10 Richest Cities in Alabama

If you prefer champagne and caviar to grits and gravy, Alabama offers plenty of places to suit. It might not be the richest state in the union, but the Heart of Dixie has some very rich folk and some even richer cities tucked away in its borders. If you want to live where people drive Maseratis, dine on wagyu beef and consider Dom Pérignon low brow, these are the 10 richest cities in Alabama.

10. Spanish Fort

Kicking off our count down of the 10 richest cities in Alabama is Spanish Fort, a tiny city where the only things smaller than the population is the poverty and unemployment rates (4.9 percent and 1.7 percent respectively) and the only thing bigger than the median income of $83,913 is the median home price of $242,600.

9. Homewood

Homewood isn’t the kind of place for people with short arms and deep pockets. With real estate prices that hoover 133 percent above the average for Alabama, don’t expect to get a house if you’re not prepared to spend a good chunk of your savings on a deposit. The good news? This is a place that offers plenty of bang for your buck – combine a median income of $84,157 with a great set of amenities and some first-class schools, and you’re not just looking at a very wealthy city, you’re looking at a very desirable one too.

8. Helena

Helena is a small city with big prices. If you’ve set your heart on making it your home, expect to pay around 14 percent more than the Alabama average for goods and services, and a massive 44 percent more for housing. Rental prices, meanwhile, are a staggering 64% higher than the Alabama average.

Fortunately, you can expect a good return on your investment – according to Area Vibes, life in the city comes with some great perks, including a crime rate that’s 69% lower than the Alabama average, an excellent standard of living, and a very handsome median income of $87,781. If you can swallow the house prices without balking, it’s a great place to live.

7. Hoover

Up next is Hoover, a medium-sized city of 85,175 that combines big-city attractions with small-town values. Family-friendly and conveniently located just a short hop, skip, and a jump from Birmingham, it offers endless wining, dining, and shopping opportunities, along with plenty of community events to get involved in.

With a median property price of $291,000, housing isn’t cheap by any stretch of the imagination – fortunately, the equally considerable median income of $89,452 more than compensates for those hefty mortgage payments.

6. Trussville

Named by Money Magazine as one of the most liveable cities in the US, Trussville is a vibrant, dynamic city of just over 19,000 residents. As one of Birmingham’s most rapidly developing areas, it’s attracted a huge amount of investment in recent years, with more and more businesses springing up in and around the center.

Opportunities for career progression are excellent, with the result that the median income now stands at a very respectable $97,226. As the city’s desirability has skyrocketed, so have the housing prices. If you want a single-family home, don’t expect much change from $255,100. If you prefer to rent, prepare to dig even deeper- with a median rent of $1,414, Trussville clearly has some exceptionally rich landlords to its name.

5. Chelsea

With a median income of $97,727, Chelsea ranks as one of Birmingham’s richest suburbs. There’s not a whole lot going on, but if you’re looking for a hometown with charm, a great sense of community, and some of the best barbeque for miles around, it’s a sound choice.

The city itself is divided between old money and new, with newcomers with flashy cars and a taste for ostentation rubbing shoulders with the good old southerners who’ve lived there for too many generations to count. Despite the divide, there’s a real sense of community about the place, with a jam-packed schedule of events and shared values that revolve around sport, church, and, of course, that fabulous barbeque.

4. Madison

49,327 people live in Madison. Not all of them are stinking rich, but enough of them are to push the median income to $99,188, the fourth-highest in Alabama. Ranked by Niche as the best suburb to buy a property in Alabama, the city is as rich in attractions as it is in everything else.

Move here, and you can expect a huge number of well-paid job opportunities to choose between (especially in the tech industry), some exceptional schools, a bunch of great shops, restaurants, and cafes, and, somewhat surprisingly given its desirability, a good range of affordable housing options.

3. Pike Road

Pike Road is a small city of just over 7000 residents. Despite its diminutive size, its population has swelled dramatically over the past decade, with the result that it now ranks as one of the fastest-growing municipalities in the state.

According to NeighborhoodScout, its property market mainly comprises of large, 4 bedroom single-family homes valued at an average of $328,217… which should give you a good idea of the amount of wealth floating around. Thanks to a booming job market, the median income is a massive $102,734 – the 3rd highest in the entire state.

2. Vestavia Hills

Described by richestjet.com as a “charming, stunning and rich city,” Vestavia Hills ranks as the second wealthiest city in Alabama. It’s got a median income of $109,485, a median home value of $376,200, a tiny unemployment rate of 2.0%, an equally tiny poverty rate of 3.9%, and enough highly-paid job opportunities to keep residents in champagne and caviar for life.

1. Mountain Brook

If you want to kick it with Alabama’s wealthiest, there’s only one place to head – Mountain Brook. In terms of median income, Mountain Brook wipes the floor with the competition, with the average household sitting pretty on the mammoth income of $152,355.

As to why so many rich Alabama’s choose to live here, take your pick. From fabulous schools to endless job opportunities, acres of green space to fashionable restaurants, this is a place that ticks every box. The flipside? A monster median home value of $628,800.

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