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Altoona is a small town of 1,252 people in Etowah County, Alabama. It's about 17 miles from Gadsden, AL and 45 miles from Birmingham, AL, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 91°F and winter highs 53°F, with about 2 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $141k and rent runs about $380 a month.
1,252people
$141kTypical home
$380/moRent
91° / 53°Summer / winter
2"Snow
241Sunny days
107Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Small town of 1,252
- Part of a metro area
- About 272 people per sq mi
- 45 mi to Birmingham, AL
- 17 mi to Gadsden, AL
- 14 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $141k (≈$887/mo)
- Median rent $380/mo
- Median household income $43k
- Property tax about 0.3% of value
- 7.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 91°F
- Winter highs around 53°F
- Muggy summers (dew point 68°F)
- 241 sunny days a year (103 totally clear)
- 124 cloudy days a year
- 42 of 90 winter days are gray
- 107 days a year with rain or snow
- 2" of snow a year
- Snow days are rare
- 1 day a year over 100°F
- Rarely drops below 10°F
- Usually calm
Safety
- Very low violent crime (132 per 100k)
- Low property crime (1,051 per 100k)
People
- Median age 41
- 21% of households have kids
- 21% are 65 or older
- 11% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 4% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 29 min
- 0% walk or take transit to work
- 42 mi to BHM airport
- 42 mi to BHM (major hub)
- 47 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 71% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1974
- 92% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Gently rolling terrain
- Elevation 915 ft
- 241 mi to the ocean
- 31 mi to a big lake
- 10 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 152 mi to the nearest ski area
- 13 mi to the nearest campground
- 12 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 130 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- 12 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 7 museums within 25 mi
- 3 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 7 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the top 21% of Alabama districts (reading)
- 2 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 12 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 61 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 11 mi to the nearest vet
- 10 mi to the nearest dog park
- 12 congregations per 10k people
- 34 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Etowah County: R+56 in 2024
- Alabama: R+31 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- Low earthquake risk
- Low flood risk
- Moderate drought risk
- Low winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk
Some of this place's Census numbers are blended with county figures because its survey sample is small.