The map and table below give geographic data on Alabama's 67 counties. The land and water areas are given in square miles.

NCHS Scheme

Of particular importance for healthcare is the urban-rural classification scheme developed by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This scheme is based on the traditional metropolitan-micropolitan classification of Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs), and so applies to counties, but is enhanced and adapted specifically for health statistics. It has four urban levels and two rural levels, ordered from most urban to most rural as follows:

1. Large Central Metro
2. Large Fringe Metro
3. Medium Metro
4. Small Metro
5. Micropolitan
6. Non-Core

The first five are associated with CBSAs. The last level, Non-Core is not associated with a CBSA, hence the name.

Map

The base layer shows Alabama's 67 counties. The counties are shaded by NCHS Type, as described above. Counties in shades of blue are urban and counties in shades of orange are rural. The counties in dark blue are large fringe metro counties; the counties in the lighter blue are medium metro counties; the counties in the lightest blue are small metro counties. The counties in light orange are micropolitan counties; and the counties in the darker orange are non-core counties. The census-designated central points and the county seats can be added as point layers with the layer control. St. Clair county has two seats—Ashville and Pell City. Click on a feature to view summary information about the feature.

Tables

County Table

Click on a row in the table to see the county highlighted in green in the map. Click on the row again to de-select.

Summary by NCHS Type