City · Talladega County, Alabama

Talladega, Alabama

Talladega is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, part of the Talladega-Sylacauga, AL metro area. It has 14,760 residents. Talladega, Alabama has a quality-of-life score of 2 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,391 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alabama it ranks #305 of 319 cities and towns. It ranks best on effective property tax rate (low), child care cost burden (low) and time spent in the emergency room (low). It ranks worst on firearm deaths (high), primary care shortage (high) and adult obesity (high).

2Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,391 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alabama: #305 of 319 in AL
Population: 14,760 (2020-2024)
Land area: 26 mi²
Density: 566.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 0174592

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety5#14,921/15,637
Economy6#14,721/15,631
Housing69#4,596/14,977
Health10#13,988/15,609
Healthcare3#15,134/15,650
Environment24#11,727/15,453
Education2#15,368/15,649
Infrastructure11#13,993/15,650
Community9#14,197/15,651
Leisure & amenities6#14,741/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Talladega, Alabama ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Talladega 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 · low0.25%
98/100Alabama 0.37%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Child care cost burden · low22.0%
88/100Alabama 25.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTalladega County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low121 min
87/100Alabama 155 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesTalladega County value
Social associations · high12.2 /10k
78/100Alabama 11.6 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTalladega County value
Pharmacies · high2.1 /10k
76/100Alabama 2.3 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsTalladega County value
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100Alabama 0 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyTalladega County value

Weaknesses

Firearm deaths · high33.3 /100k
1/100Alabama 21.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataTalladega County value
Primary care shortage · high20.0
1/100Alabama 11.8United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationTalladega County value
Adult obesity · high47.5%
2/100Alabama 40.8%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Homicide rate · high16.0 /100k
2/100Alabama 9.8 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataTalladega County value
Math scores · low2.44
2/100Alabama 2.65United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTalladega County value
Premature death · high15,223 /100k
4/100Alabama 11,613 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTalladega County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedImproving
0.3 /1k (2021) → 0.5 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+114%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.2% (2015-2019) → 86.3% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$27,719 (2015-2019) → $44,198 (2020-2024)
+59%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
18.3% (2015-2019) → 11.7% (2020-2024)
−6.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Average commute timeWorsening
20.5 min (2015-2019) → 24.6 min (2020-2024)
+20%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Child poverty rateImproving
40.8% (2015-2019) → 37.7% (2020-2024)
−3.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

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, Talladega, Alabama improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 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.

Improved4

Uninsured−6.6 points18.3% → 11.7%
Household income+59%$27,719 → $44,198
Inequality−0.0550.520 → 0.465
Broadband+13 points73.2% → 86.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Talladega, Alabama between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.5 min2015-2019	24.6 min2020-2024	+4.1 min	Within the margin of error	14%
Bachelor's degree or higher	14.5%2015-2019	13.6%2020-2024	−0.8 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Broadband subscriptions	73.2%2015-2019	86.3%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	73%
Child poverty rate	40.8%2015-2019	37.7%2020-2024	−3.1 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Effective property tax rate	0.38%2015-2019	0.26%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	41%
High school diploma or higher	74.6%2015-2019	77.7%2020-2024	+3.1 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Home price to income ratio	3.1×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	91%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5202015-2019	0.4652020-2024	−0.055	Improved	86%
Median household income	$27,7192015-2019	$44,1982020-2024	+59%	Improved	90%
Poverty rate	27.4%2015-2019	25.6%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	29.6%2015-2019	29.3%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Rent-burdened households	48.2%2015-2019	48.8%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Unemployment rate	14.5%2015-2019	12.6%2020-2024	−1.9 points	Within the margin of error	81%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	18.3%2015-2019	11.7%2020-2024	−6.6 points	Improved	91%

“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 Talladega, Alabama five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Talladega, 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, Talladega, Alabama itself moved +3.5 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

14,760 residents (±32)

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

5,360 households (±292)

Talladega, Alabama
Alabama share

Under $25k30%1,618
$25k–50k25%1,317
$50k–75k13%710

Homes

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

Owners and renters

5,360 households (±292)

Talladega, Alabama
Alabama share

Own55%2,968
Rent45%2,392

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

4,797 workers (±446)

Talladega, Alabama
Alabama share

Drive alone79%3,807
Carpool12%†556
Public transit0.1%†3

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 Talladega-Sylacauga, 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 Talladega County, the county holding most of Talladega's residents.

Talladega County has 1,256 employer establishments, 155 for every 10,000 residents (0.62× the US rate of 248; 0.75× Alabama's), with 28,466 paid employees at an average annual pay of $51,436. The Census Bureau also counts 4,803 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,256; 4,803 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 155; US 248 · Alabama 207
Paid employees: 28,466
Average annual pay: $51,436; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	94	11.6	0.63×Fewer than typical	2,111	$17,553	38
Ambulatory health care services	91	11.2	0.54×Fewer than typical	663	$66,335	179
Religious organizations	82	10.1	1.82×More than typical	304	$18,595	—
Gasoline stations	69	8.5	2.63×More than typical	528	$25,191	3
Specialty trade contractors	61	7.5	0.49×Fewer than typical	1,466	$63,617	424
Limited-service restaurants	55	6.8	0.85×About typical	1,680	$17,629	15
Building equipment contractors	35	4.3	0.72×Fewer than typical	150	$49,747	100
General merchandise stores	35	4.3	2.44×More than typical	823	$26,461	24
Truck transportation	34	4.2	0.83×About typical	589	$57,469	151
Full-service restaurants	31	3.8	0.50×Fewer than typical	374	$17,556	12
Lessors of real estate	30	3.7	0.30×Fewer than typical	78	$37,141	303
Offices of physicians	28	3.5	0.53×Fewer than typical	278	$85,374	24

Rank places for an industry Open Talladega County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 81,060 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 $1.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Talladega, Alabama: $95.26 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1.4M; −36% vs FY2025
Per resident: $95.26; US $1,994
Sole-source: 75%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.4%; 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 Air Force$690K49%
Defense Logistics Agency$440.4K31%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$190.3K14%
Department of the Navy$43.9K3.1%
Forest Service$25.5K1.8%
Federal Prison Industries / Unicor$10.6K0.8%
Defense Contract Management Agency$9,7360.7%
Environmental Protection Agency$6,0490.4%

Top recipients

ALABAMA INSTITUTE FOR DEAF & BLIND$562.3K40%
ELBITAMERICA, INC.$370.5K26%
PACIFIC ELECTRONIC ENTERPRISES INC$198.1K14%
SEVEN CORNERS INC$172.6K12%
COLLINS ELBIT VISION SYSTEMS, LLC$62.4K4.4%

Spending by fiscal year

3.5MFY2017
4.3MFY2018
4.2MFY2019
3.3MFY2020
3.7MFY2021
5.2MFY2022
2MFY2023
4.5M

Top industries (NAICS)

Electronic and precision equipment repair and maintenance · 8112$533.6K38%
Cut and sew apparel manufacturing · 3152$349.6K25%
General medical and surgical hospitals · 6221$172.6K12%
Apparel accessories and other apparel manufacturing · 3159$163.2K12%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$58.8K4.2%
Other leather and allied product manufacturing · 3169

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

Talladega, Alabama's figures are part of those of Talladega County, AL ($73.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 1.9% of that total.

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

See federal money in Talladega 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.

Talladega, Alabama is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Talladega County7100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Talladega-Sylacauga, AL8

Other cities and towns in Talladega 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/0174592

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends