Everyone travels to different places, looking for one thing or the other. You, too, must have travelled to a place and searched for the best food, places to visit, history, and culture.
Well, if you’re planning to move to Alabama, you definitely will have the question, Is Alabama a good place to live?
Is Alabama a Good Place to Live?
If you’re looking forward to moving to Alabama, be ready for the kindest neighbours, beautiful rivers, and the extreme college love for football. Here, you’ll meet with low costs, heart-stopping coastlines, and food you’ll never forget the taste of.
Alabama has roots deep in music, and its history is one of the reasons for the development of blues, jazz, and country music in the world.
Alabama has a rich history, art, culture, industry, and barbecue. But the question remains, “Is Alabama a good place to live?”
Now let us dive into the various factors you should consider moving to Alabama.
Table of Content
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History
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Education
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Football
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Music
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Places to visit
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Festivals
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Food
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Cost of living
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Weather
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Popular towns
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Alcohol sales
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Cons
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Some facts
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FAQs
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Conclusion
1. Rich history
Now, if we must, let us start with the very beginning of Alabama. Everyone who knows about Alabama’s rich past, including the civil war and civil rights movement, knows that Alabama has been the centre of US history.
It is where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was born and raised to change history and help in the civil war. For this, she was jailed and paid a fine. She did this to fight for her rights and the discrimination against people of colour.
Incidents like these make it easy to doubt whether Alabama is a good place to live. But what happens further will encourage you.
She was a respected member of the NAACP and was supported for her bravery, but they needed a leader who could talk to the public and demand support.
And they picked a pastor, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. With the help of MIA, Rosa Parks, and Dr. Martin Luther King, they were able to boycott passenger buses, and the movement Montgomery Bus Boycott was a success and helped in the civil rights movement.
3. Education
Now, if you’re moving to a new place, you should know about the education quality and system. For your child to have a bright future, they need the studies just as much better. So, let us investigate further to know whether Alabama is a good place to live and provide education for your child.
Moving to Alabama, your child will have a k-12 education with public schools providing primary and secondary education. Alabama state board focuses on ensuring that every child is equipped with a quality education.
The state has various great graduate universities, including Auburn university. According to US news and world report 2022, Auburn university is considered the No.1 university in Alabama and comes among the top 50 public universities in the nation.
Various science centres are available, including McWane and Birmingham civil rights institute.
Now, I would not have included them in the ‘education’ section, but every education is incomplete without knowing about the history and artwork of the country!
The McWane science centre is a non-profit organization. It is a science museum in Birmingham and was opened to the public on July 11, 1998. It has various species of marine life and many artifacts available for knowledge and tourist attraction.
The institute also has numerous documents from the civil rights movement period. Museums are a great source of information if you want to learn about the history and all the glories of a place!
4. Football
It won’t be an exaggeration to say that football is a religion here. If you’re moving to Alabama, you should know about Alabama college football and how it is preached here.
The college football season is in the late summer to late fall. Every Saturday, offices, businesses, the economy, and highways reroute themselves for football.
Here, football is considered one of the priorities. But only sport and education do not answer the question, “Is Alabama a good place to live” there are other factors too.
5. Music
As said before, Alabama is one of the states with deep musical roots. The state has great taste in music, with one of the best songs like “Sweet home Alabama”.
It has various famous artists like Jimmy Buffett, Aretha Franklin, Nat king cole, Willie Nelson, and many more. The state also has Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame as a non-profit organization that performs each year in the summer months in San Diego.
6. Some Top Places to Visit in Alabama
If you’re living in Alabama, you need to know all the amazing places to visit here. We have coasts, zoos, seashores, beaches, and many more.
Once you start travelling to these places and get addicted, there’s no going back, and you might get to know whether Alabama is a good place to live. We made a list to help you decide which sites to visit first.
1. Gulf Coast
Alabama provides its residents and tourists with an excess of the gulf coast of about 60 miles. Not many people know about it, but it is certainly a good thing and helps this open place to stay clean and peaceful.
The Gulf coast provides access to many public beaches for people to spend their holidays and also has facilities like restrooms and showers. West beach, one of them, has made it fun for over 20 million people to spend their holidays.
It is extended to Fort Morgan Peninsula, starting from Mobile Bay. You can also have a science trip with stops like Fairhope, New Orleans, Foley, Mobile, and more.
2. Gulf Shores and Orange beach
Warm water, moderate temperature, and a beautiful sunset make an evening at a beach perfect. If you’re living in Alabama, you have it all here.
Gulf shores and Orange beach provide a beautiful view and facilities like restaurants where you can spend your perfect evening or day with the most delicious food you’ll taste.
It also has attractions like amusement parks, golf courts, and water sports.
It is one of the best places to spend a romantic evening with or have a fun night with your family, or even if you have a lazy day and want to get away from your hectic daily routine, here is the right place to spend the time.
3. Cheaha State Park
Cheaha state park is on the highest point in Alabama. And if you’re living in Alabama, you must go there at least once. It is 2407 feet above sea level.
The park allows you to go hiking, mountain trails, camping, and fishing and provides lakes for swimming, an artifact exhibition, and motel rooms.
While living in Alabama, you should visit the Park at least once and have a great experience here.
4. Birmingham Zoo
Birmingham zoo is the state’s most popular means of attraction. People from southern states come to see various animals here, such as lions, orangutans, red pandas, sea lions, elephants, zebras, giraffes, hippos, and many more.
With approximately 550 animals and 180 species, this zoo has almost every animal you want to see. It is always a good time to visit the zoo and with family.
It is much more fun. It has Birmingham botanical garden nearby, which is another great place to stay while moving to Alabama, especially if you are a plant lover and obsess over their various species.
Or maybe this place is for your little daughters who dream of becoming a witch someday and love adding new plants to their potions.
So is Alabama a good place to live? Surely a yes! That is your decision, but is Alabama a good place for a vacation?
7. Festivals
Like other states, Louisiana and Alabama also love to celebrate various festivals. If You’re moving to Alabama, you should know about their festivities across the state.
Alabama’s Madi Gras may not be on the same level as New Orleans’s, but it is important as it was the first Madi Gras parade in the US.
People have holidays for these events and public celebration parties. Opp Rattlesnake Rodeo, the Athens Grease Festival, and many more get-togethers in the state help people get close and spread more love.
The festivals might make it easier to answer whether Alabama is a good place to live. Living in Alabama, you must experience all these parties and celebrations.
8. Food
I hope we all agree with the fact that southern states are unbeatable in the matter of food.
No matter what kind of food you like, you cannot say no to this food. Alabama has the best food all over the US.
It is famous for its barbeque, and you will find various places to eat it. But do not forget to visit Golden Rule Bar-B-Q, Big Bob Gilson Bar-B-Q, Dreamland BBQ, etc.
You can also visit local meat-and-three restaurants and try their fried green tomatoes, fried pickles, fried catfish, and anything else you like. Once you eat here, you won’t think of eating something from outside due to the richness of Alabama in its taste.
9. What is the cost of living in Alabama?
Alabama is a beautiful state and rich in other aspects, have a considerably low cost of living. The average cost of living in Alabama is $35,000-$45,000 per year. But is Alabama a good place to live just because of its low prices? It’s your choice.
10. Weather
This place will be very comfortable if you love summer and warm weather. But if you are more of a winter-admiring person, this might not be the best experience for you in south Alabama.
As when you are moving to Alabama, you’ll need to adjust. In the Alabama summer, the season remains hot for nine months, with a moderate winter for the rest of the months.
Despite the summer, the southern state of Alabama has severe weather like thunderstorms and a large number of hurricanes which might affect you on the negative side.
But this Yellowhammer state offers you to wear flip-flops and summer clothing most of the time with hot, humid weather, so be prepared with your packing and keep more summer clothes.
11. Popular Towns
There are 169 cities and 291 towns in this Yellowhammer state. Life in Alabama is slower than in other places. People love to enjoy their meals and savour the moment.
But if you are looking for a faster life, You can always move to other Alabama cities like Birmingham, but overall the state is relaxed.
12. Alcohol sales
Alabama has been at the front of the beer crafting. Various flavours are available that keep growing and gaining popularity, among others.
Brewers are in most demand, and Alabama has over 50 different types of breweries. So however far you must be, You can always find beer and breweries in other places in Alabama.
13. Cons
We have discussed many pros of living in Alabama, but here we are now, and we will discuss the cons.
1. Economy
One of which is the economy of the state. Unfortunately, Alabama’s economy is not good.
It is the state with the sixth highest poverty rate, and even after the low cost of living here, people cannot find it easy to pay all the prices due to the down economy, which raises confusion in people. Is Alabama a good place to live?
Since 1960, the farmland has been decreasing, as it is being sold for more industrial setups such as automobile manufacturing, steel industry, fabrication, and mineral extraction.
The average salary of a person in the US is around $31,000, while in Alabama, it is about $39,000 and hence higher than the national average salary.
With this salary and low cost of living, people can afford to live in houses with low property taxes. Even though Alabama is suffering from an unemployment rate, you can still afford a decent home and live a happy life if you move to Alabama.
Most of the job market in Alabama focuses on the industrial part now, so if you have the appropriate training and skills, you can lead a happy life here.
As economic cooperation tries to bring up the national average economy, they focus on the job market and tend to increase the number of industries to improve living.
2. Violence
If you’re moving to Alabama, you should know that the crime rate here is higher than the national average.
According to a survey, 56-66% of people think Alabama’s crime rate has been rising over the past decade. Even though it has decreased with time, it is still higher than in other states.
There is a fear in people living in Alabama due to high crime that they use self-protection like pepper spray. Even though the neighbourhood is quite loving, you never know when something can turn into violence.
14. Some Amazing Facts you Must know
- Alabama is also called a Cotton State and the only state called “Heart of Dixie”. The top cotton-producing countries are Madison, Colbert, Limestone, Monroe, Lawrence, and Baldwin.
- After its state bird, Alabama is nicknamed “Yellowhammer state”. It is called Yellowhammer state after the civil war also because of the yellow highlights on the clothes of their soldiers.
- Moving to Alabama, you should know that the state capital of Alabama used to be Tuscaloosa, but in 1826, the state legislature voted to transfer the money. And in 1846, Montgomery became the permanent state capital.
- Joan Didion, an American writer, wrote, “It is said that the dead centre of Birmingham society is the southeast corner of the locker room at the Mountain Brook country club. It is hard to connect this Birmingham with that of Bull Connor.”
- According to George Wallace, an American politician, Mountain Brook is a place with rich folks.
- Due to poor weather conditions, there are high risks of thunderstorms and hurricanes.
- Huntsville is the largest metropolitan area in northern Alabama, also known as the rocket city of the state, with around 363-foot-tall rocket towers situated throughout the town.
- Moving to another state, you’ll also require to know about its internet services, so let me tell you that the availability of Broadband internet is 89.8% in Alabama.
- Alabama has rich natural resources of cotton, iron ores, limestone, and coal, which made Alabama a major steel-producing state.
- People want to see improvement in k-12 education, so the current state priority is improving the education system here.
- Alabama means ‘vegetation gatherers’, which the state used to be, but due to industrialization, it’s now lost its farmlands to industries.
15. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. What is Alabama known for?
Ans. Alabama is known for its hospitality, history, greater taste in music and, of course, its love for football.
Q2. What is it like living in Alabama?
Ans. If you’re planning to move to Alabama, be ready for amazing food, music, shores and the kindest neighbours with an immense love for football.
Q3. Where is Alabama located?
Ans. Alabama is a state in the US located in its southeastern region.
Q4. What is good about living in Alabama?
Ans. With its low cost of living, Alabama is one of the cheapest states in the US.
Q5. Does it snow in Alabama?
Ans. Alabama has warmer weather compared to other states, but a light snowfall can be observed in the northern region a few times every winter.
Q6. Are tornados common in Alabama?
Ans. Tornados are frequent in Alabama, with many 44 tornados per year.
16. Conclusion: Is Alabama a Good Place to Live?
The pros and cons of living in Alabama are discussed in the article, and they seem to be in a high fight. But every place has its low points.
Here, they are poverty, violence, and not-so-great-education-system. But all the credit for making Alabama a good place to live goes to its rich culture, heritage, food, and history.
And, of course, it’s love for football. Its active presence will also create a record in the future that people will look forward to.
So tell us about your decision. Would you prefer to live in Alabama after all the information you’ve gathered here?
According to you, is Alabama a good place to live? I would at least like to visit the site once for vacation.
Also, read Best Time to Visit Florida Keys.
Last Updated on June 12, 2023 by somya909
