Huntsville Passes Birmingham As Alabama's Largest City

HUNTSVILLE, AL — Birmingham has been Alabama's most populated city for more than 100 years. But that distinction now belongs to Huntsville, according to the results from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Huntsville reported a population of approximately 215,000, a nearly 20 percent increase from the 2010 census. Birmingham's population was reported at 200,733, a decline of 5 percent from the last census. In fat, Birmingham is barely the state's second largest city, edging Montgomery by just 130 people.

As far as metro area population is concerned, Birmingham is still the state's largest, with 1.1 million people, more than twice the population of Hunstville's metro area.

Notable Birmingham metro area growth:

• Trussville: 31 percent growth
• Helena: 25 percent growth
• Vestavia Hills: 15 percent growth
• Gardendale: 15 percent growth
• Pelham: 14 percent growth
• Hoover: 13 percent growth
• Mountain Brook: 10 percent growth
• Homewood: 5 percent growth
• Center Point: 3 percent decline
• Bessemer: 5 percent decline

The 2020 U.S. Census shows Alabama with a population of 5,024,000, making it the 24th most populous state.