Census-designated place · Elmore County, Alabama

Blue Ridge, Alabama

Blue Ridge is a census-designated place in Elmore County, Alabama, part of the Montgomery, AL metro area. It has 1,190 residents. Blue Ridge, Alabama has a quality-of-life score of 42 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #9,100 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alabama it ranks #45 of 319 cities and towns. It ranks best on effective property tax rate (low), unemployment rate (low) and job growth (high). It ranks worst on dentists (low), mental health providers (low) and primary care physicians (low).

42Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #9,100 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alabama: #45 of 319 in AL
Population: 1,190 (2020-2024)
Land area: 8 mi²
Density: 153.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 0107588

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety39#9,466/15,637
Economy84#2,437/15,631
Housing—
Health58#6,543/15,609
Healthcare18#12,843/15,650
Environment50#7,711/15,453
Education44#8,694/15,649
Infrastructure76#3,824/15,650
Community17#13,066/15,651
Leisure & amenities17#13,033/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Blue Ridge, Alabama ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Elmore County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Effective property tax rate · low0.26%
98/100Alabama 0.37%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Unemployment rate · low0.0%
98/100Alabama 2.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Job growth · high4.2%
97/100Alabama 0.7%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataElmore County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low107 min
94/100Alabama 155 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesElmore County value
Child care cost burden · low20.6%
93/100Alabama 25.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value
Broadband subscriptions · high98.4%
93/100Alabama 87.5%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002

Weaknesses

Dentists · low13 /100k
2/100Alabama 49 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value
Mental health providers · low41 /100k
4/100Alabama 156 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value
Primary care physicians · low21 /100k
5/100Alabama 65 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low1.8 /10k
8/100Alabama 3.3 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsElmore County value
Preventable hospital stays · high4,054 /100k
8/100Alabama 3,481 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value
Flu vaccinations · low30.0%
8/100Alabama 36.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElmore County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,490 (2015-2019) → 1,190 (2020-2024)
−20%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Average commute timeWorsening
21.5 min (2015-2019) → 34.1 min (2020-2024)
+58%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Median household incomeImproving
$92,250 (2015-2019) → $128,482 (2020-2024)
+39%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
91.5% (2015-2019) → 98.4% (2020-2024)
+6.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
1.2% (2015-2019) → 6.2% (2020-2024)
+5 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
0.7% (2015-2019) → 5.0% (2020-2024)
+4.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Blue Ridge, Alabama improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Household income+39%$92,250 → $128,482

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Blue Ridge, Alabama between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.5 min2015-2019	34.1 min2020-2024	+12.6 min	Within the margin of error	1%
Bachelor's degree or higher	50.9%2015-2019	54.4%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Broadband subscriptions	91.5%2015-2019	98.4%2020-2024	+6.9 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Child poverty rate	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Effective property tax rate	0.21%2015-2019	0.26%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	10%
High school diploma or higher	98.3%2015-2019	96.2%2020-2024	−2.1 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	−0.3×	Within the margin of error	90%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3812015-2019	0.3242020-2024	−0.056	Within the margin of error	86%
Median household income	$92,2502015-2019	$128,4822020-2024	+39%	Improved	73%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Blue Ridge, Alabama five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Blue Ridge, Alabama in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Blue Ridge, Alabama itself moved −2.3 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,190 residents (±267)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

509 households (±102)

Blue Ridge, Alabama
Alabama share

Under $25k4.9%†25
$25k–50k6.3%†32
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

509 households (±102)

Blue Ridge, Alabama
Alabama share

Own99%502
Rent1.4%†7

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

568 workers (±154)

Blue Ridge, Alabama
Alabama share

Drive alone82%464
Carpool8.6%†49
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Montgomery, AL

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Elmore County, the county holding most of Blue Ridge's residents.

Elmore County has 1,305 employer establishments, 144 for every 10,000 residents (0.58× the US rate of 248; 0.70× Alabama's), with 15,513 paid employees at an average annual pay of $40,764. The Census Bureau also counts 6,247 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,305; 6,247 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 144; US 248 · Alabama 207
Paid employees: 15,513
Average annual pay: $40,764; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Elmore County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	117	12.9	0.70×Fewer than typical	2,018	$19,166	22
Specialty trade contractors	102	11.3	0.73×Fewer than typical	721	$55,064	614
Religious organizations	77	8.5	1.53×More than typical	451	$23,459	—
Ambulatory health care services	69	7.6	0.37×Fewer than typical	660	$46,918	191
Limited-service restaurants	67	7.4	0.92×About typical	1,231	$17,066	4
Gasoline stations	62	6.9	2.11×More than typical	237	$20,017	—
Building equipment contractors	52	5.7	0.96×About typical	483	$57,149	154
Lessors of real estate	52	5.7	0.47×Fewer than typical	85	$40,271	547
Construction of buildings	51	5.6	0.75×Fewer than typical	247	$40,036	280
Services to buildings and dwellings	45	5	0.74×Fewer than typical	166	$38,127	686
Full-service restaurants	38	4.2	0.55×Fewer than typical	657	$23,029	11
Automotive repair and maintenance	33	3.6	0.72×Fewer than typical	164	$51,494	113

Rank places for an industry Open Elmore County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 90,478 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $6,403 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Blue Ridge, Alabama: $5.38 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $6,403; −23% vs FY2025
Per resident: $5.38; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of Veterans Affairs$6,403100%

Top recipients

MIDENGA GROUP CAPITAL LLC$6,403100%

Spending by fiscal year

3.1KFY2018
0FY2021
8.3KFY2025
6.4KFY2026

What was bought

Other equipment & supplies$6,403100%

Top industries (NAICS)

Cut and sew apparel manufacturing · 3152$6,403100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Blue Ridge, Alabama, so they do not add up across cities.

Blue Ridge, Alabama's figures are part of those of Elmore County, AL ($178.4K in FY2026), never added to them: 3.6% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Blue Ridge is mostly in Elmore County.

See federal money in Elmore County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Blue Ridge, Alabama is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Gary J. PalmerR-AL-6 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 1.2%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Elmore County42100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Montgomery, AL26

Other cities and towns in Elmore County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0107588

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends