Population
266 residents
Census ACS 2023 - Alabama
City profile · Alabama · Census ACS 2023
Gainesville, AL
Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Gainesville - drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.
- 266
- Residents
- $1,140
- Median rent (state)
Gainesville - the verdict
266 people call Gainesville, Alabama home. Source: Census ACS.
- 31st
- percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Gainesville, AL
Alabama's Gainesville is a small town, with 266 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. The median resident age is 35.0 years. About 20.6% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 53.3% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
NOAA climate normals record an annual average temperature of 63.9°F with 60.0 inches of precipitation per year.
Living costs in Alabama run below the national norm: the state registers 88.8 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Well Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,140 per month statewide. Monthly utility costs average around $245 across Alabama, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 29.3 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Very Low).
Median Household Income
N/A /yr
Poverty 60.3%
Cost of Living Index (state)
88.8 (US=100)
Well Below Average - BEA RPP 2024, Alabama average
How does Gainesville compare to other US cities?
Gainesville measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Median rent 31% pricier than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Gainesville against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Alabama only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Alabama-relative analysis
Poverty Rate is Gainesville's strongest outlier among Alabama cities
Among the 556 Alabama cities PlainCities tracks with reported poverty rate data, Gainesville ranks #4 - the 99th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Gainesville only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Gross Rent
#151 of 556
72nd percentile in Alabama
Poverty Rate
#4 of 556
99th percentile in Alabama
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#181 of 556
67th percentile in Alabama
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Alabama only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Income distribution context
Median household income is not available for Gainesville in the current Census ACS release (common for very small places).
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 20.6%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL) 60.3%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+) 53.3%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
266
Median Income
N/A
Median Home Value
N/A
Median Age
35.0
Poverty Rate
60.3%
Labor force participation
53.3%
Bachelor's Degree+
20.6%
Climate
Avg Temperature
63.9°F
Annual Precipitation
60.0"
Annual Snowfall
N/A
Population Change
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Commute Patterns
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
74.1%
Carpool
20.5%
Public Transit
5.4%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
0.0%
Based on 112 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
State-average estimates for Alabama - EIA 2023 residential energy data
Electricity
$138
avg/month
Natural Gas
$62
avg/month
Water & Sewer
$45
avg/month
Total Utilities
$245
estimated/month
Estimates reflect Alabama state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Cost of living is a Alabama state average from BEA; rent and hazard risk are county-level figures from HUD and FEMA for the county Gainesville sits in
Cost of Living Index
88.8
Well Below Average
US average = 100 · BEA RPP 2024
Typical 2-BR Rent
$1,140/mo
HUD Fair Market Rent
County-level FMR estimate
Natural Hazard Risk
29.3 / 100
Very Low
FEMA NRI composite score (county)
Similar Cities in Alabama
Cities of a Similar Size Nationwide
Population-matched peers from other states, closest to Gainesville's 266 residents (Census ACS 5-Year 2023).
Race & Ethnicity Composition
City-level race and ethnicity, Census ACS 5-year 2023 (tables B02001, B03001), OMB Directive 15 categories.
How Gainesville compares to nearby Alabama cities
Population + median household income, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).
Census ACS 5-year FIPS AL NOAA Normals OMB Bulletin 23-01
What do people ask about Gainesville, AL?
What is the population of Gainesville, AL? +
Gainesville, AL counts 266 residents according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.
What is the cost of living in Gainesville? +
BEA does not publish a city-level cost-of-living figure for Gainesville; the closest available measure is the Alabama state average, a cost of living index of 88.8 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Well Below Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data. Costs within Alabama vary by metro area.
What is the climate like in Gainesville? +
Gainesville has an average annual temperature of 63.9°F, 60.0 inches of precipitation. Source: NOAA Climate Normals.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES.
Citation & verification links
Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCitiesEvery figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.