Alabama Population 2024

Alabama's population was recently eclipsed by South Carolina's, pushing Alabama to 24th in state rank by population. Alabama's population growth is at 0.26% a year, which ranks it as the 36th fastest growing state.

Alabama Area and Population Density

Based on current population estimates, there are 94.4 people per square mile (36 per square kilometer) over a total surface area of 52,420 square miles, which ranks Alabama 27th in population density in the United States.

Alabama Gender and Religion Statistics

Alabama has a median age of 38.6 years for the overall population in 2018, with gender percentages currently at 51.5% Female and 48.5% Male (see chart further below).

A large majority of Alabamans - 86% - associate themselves with any variation of Christianity, the remaining 12% are unaffiliated to a particular religion in general.

Alabama Boundary, Census and Statehood History

Most of present-day Alabama was part of Georgia until the south-central part was included in Mississippi Territory, whose establishment was authorized by Congress in 1798 and agreed to by Georgia in 1802. In 1804, Mississippi Territory was expanded to include the rest of Alabama except for the Gulf Coast portion, which was added in 1812 although still in dispute with Spain until 1819. Alabama became a territory in 1817, and was admitted as the 22nd State on December 14, 1819 with substantially its present boundaries (Encyclopedia of Alabama, 2018).

Census coverage of Alabama began in 1800, included much of the State by 1820, and added the rest by 1840. The totals for 1800 and 1810 are for areas then in Mississippi Territory. In 1820 the official State total (127,901) did not include the population (16,416) of three counties whose census returns only arrived in Washington in 1822.

Alabama has one of the largest populations of African American residents in the United States. With over 26% of the population identifying as black or African American, this state ranks 7th when compared to the other 49 states plus Washington D.C. This large population is a result of slaves that were brought to the region, which was known as the "Black Belt." Following the abolishment of slavery after the Civil War, many African Americans settled in this region to work in agriulture.

Alabama has a very low percentage of residents that identify with two or more races -- accounting for just over 1% of the population. This puts Alabama in 48th place when compared to other states. It also has a lower population of Asians and Hispanics than the majority of other states, while its population of whites and American Indians fall about squarely in the middle when compared to other states. Alabama did, however, see 145% growth in its Hispanic population between the years 2000 and 2010, which led to a total population increase of 27.7% from 2000 to 2009.

While there is a high percentage of white residents, the median age of whites is 41.2 years, according to data from 2010. Hispanics and African Americans have median ages of 24.8 and 32.2 years, respectively, which could indicate a change in future demographics.