City · Wilcox County, Alabama

Camden, Alabama

Camden is a city in Wilcox County, Alabama. It has 1,803 residents. Camden, Alabama has a quality-of-life score of 1 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,542 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alabama it ranks #317 of 319 cities and towns. It ranks best on drug overdose deaths (low), effective property tax rate (low) and pharmacies (high). It ranks worst on math scores (low), access to exercise opportunities (low) and reading scores (low).

1Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,542 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alabama: #317 of 319 in AL
Population: 1,803 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 430.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 0111512

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 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.

Safety13#13,667/15,637
Economy3#15,226/15,631
Housing34#9,857/14,977
Health10#14,081/15,609
Healthcare2#15,387/15,650
Environment27#11,250/15,453
Education7#14,590/15,649
Infrastructure1#15,556/15,650
Community15#13,332/15,651
Leisure & amenities13#13,554/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Camden, Alabama ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Wilcox 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

Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Alabama 16.1 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataWilcox County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.27%
98/100Alabama 0.37%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Pharmacies · high3.1 /10k
97/100Alabama 2.3 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWilcox County value
Public libraries · high3.0 /10k
96/100Alabama 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesWilcox County value
New business applications · high16.9 /1k
78/100Alabama 13.6 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauWilcox County value
Comfortable days · high29.6%
76/100Alabama 28.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationWilcox County value

Weaknesses

Math scores · low1.81
0/100Alabama 2.65United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWilcox County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low1.6%
0/100Alabama 61.4%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWilcox County value
Reading scores · low2.19
0/100Alabama 2.83United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWilcox County value
Primary care shortage · high21.0
1/100Alabama 11.8United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationWilcox County value
Food environment index · low4.5
1/100Alabama 5.6United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWilcox County value
Adult obesity · high49.7%
1/100Alabama 40.8%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,177 (2015-2019) → 1,803 (2020-2024)
−17%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
48.4% (2015-2019) → 86.3% (2020-2024)
+38 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
29.7% (2015-2019) → 51.0% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
60.4% (2015-2019) → 76.4% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
35.6% (2015-2019) → 51.3% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.3× (2015-2019) → 3.6× (2020-2024)
+56%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×

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, Camden, Alabama improved on 1 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 10 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

Broadband+16 points60.4% → 76.4%

Declined1

Rent / income+21 points29.7% → 51.0%

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Camden, Alabama between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.0 min2015-2019	31.1 min2020-2024	+8.1 min	Within the margin of error	4%
Bachelor's degree or higher	24.2%2015-2019	20.7%2020-2024	−3.4 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Broadband subscriptions	60.4%2015-2019	76.4%2020-2024	+16 points	Improved	82%
Child poverty rate	35.6%2015-2019	51.3%2020-2024	+16 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Effective property tax rate	0.28%2015-2019	0.27%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	18%
High school diploma or higher	85.4%2015-2019	83.3%2020-2024	−2.1 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	3.6×2020-2024	+1.3×	Within the margin of error	13%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4682015-2019	0.4442020-2024	−0.024	Within the margin of error	70%
Median household income	$44,5242015-2019	$36,4812020-2024	−18%	Within the margin of error	1%
Poverty rate	23.4%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	+2.1 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	29.7%2015-2019	51.0%2020-2024	+21 points	Declined	2%

“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 Camden, Alabama five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Camden, 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, Camden, Alabama itself moved −17 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,803 residents (±345)

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

698 households (±133)

Camden, Alabama
Alabama share

Under $25k45%†315
$25k–50k19%†136
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

698 households (±133)

Camden, Alabama
Alabama share

Own73%512
Rent27%†186

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+11.8 points).

† 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

647 workers (±165)

Camden, Alabama
Alabama share

Drive alone88%570
Carpool8.2%†53
Public transit0.0%0

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 Wilcox County, the county holding most of Camden's residents.

Wilcox County has 169 employer establishments, 170 for every 10,000 residents (0.68× the US rate of 248; 0.82× Alabama's), with 1,882 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,850. The Census Bureau also counts 650 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 169; 650 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 170; US 248 · Alabama 207
Paid employees: 1,882
Average annual pay: $57,850; US $68,342

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

Religious organizations	11	11.1	1.99×More than typical	34	$13,971	—
Restaurants and other eating places	11	11.1	0.60×Fewer than typical	92	$15,837	8
Ambulatory health care services	10	10.1	0.48×Fewer than typical	53	$42,377	19
Truck transportation	10	10.1	1.99×More than typical	47	$51,426	49
Gasoline stations	8	8	2.48×Too few to compare	50	$28,840	—
Lessors of real estate	7	7	0.57×Too few to compare	11	$21,182	35
Specialty trade contractors	7	7	0.45×Too few to compare	130	$53,938	34
Limited-service restaurants	6	6	0.75×Too few to compare	66	$16,833	4
Automotive repair and maintenance	5	5	1.00×Too few to compare	16	$45,438	16
Grocery and convenience stores	5	5	1.69×Too few to compare	50	$25,420	6
Building equipment contractors	4	4	0.67×Too few to compare	68	$54,103	7
Full-service restaurants	4	4	0.52×Too few to compare	26	$10,846	—

Rank places for an industry Open Wilcox County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 9,950 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 $306 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Camden, Alabama: $0.17 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $306; −90% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.17; US $1,994
Sole-source: 47%; 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 the Army$306100%

Top recipients

KINMAN CONNIE$16153%
WILCOX COUNTY WATER AND SEWER DISTRICT$14447%

Spending by fiscal year

58.6KFY2017
311.4FY2018
85.8FY2019
14.5KFY2020
331.2FY2021
199FY2022
31.5KFY2023
8KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

RV parks and recreational camps · 7212$16153%
Water, sewage and other systems · 2213$14447%

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 Camden, Alabama, so they do not add up across cities.

Camden, Alabama's figures are part of those of Wilcox County, AL ($21.2K in FY2026), never added to them: 1.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Wilcox 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.

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

House

Terri A. SewellD-AL-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 95%Missed 1.6%

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.

Wilcox County0100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Wilcox 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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/0111512

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends