Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Calera is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B+ overall, 40th among Alabama's 187 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its schools rank ahead of 83% of Alabama towns. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $87K. A typical home there costs about $255K, 3.6 years of the Birmingham metro’s $71K median household income. Calera’s trail density is 0.9 miles per square mile, against 0.1 in Alabama’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Calera Downtown Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Among 187 Alabama towns, just 5 have a lower share of residents 65 or older than Calera.
Where Calera beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Calera Elementary | K–2 | 766 |
| Calera Intermediate School | 3–5 | 747 |
| Calera Middle | 6–8 | 767 |
Calera Downtown Historic District11,620 counted in 2010 and 16,494 in 2020; an estimated 18,992 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 15.2% since 2020, after 41.9% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Alabama), ordered by how far Calera is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 234 in 1880, 16,494 in 2020. The archive holds 15 old photos and papers going back to 1935 and 3 maps from 1910 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Calera, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Calera.
Calera has less heart disease than most of Alabama, but it has commutes longer than most of Alabama.
23 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Eagle Sports Complex, 56 acres with 1.6 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Eagle Sports Complex | 1.6 mi | 56 |
| 2. Calera Sports Complex | — | 41 |
| 3. Heart of Dixie Rail Museum | — | 21 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Shelby County school district. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Calera High, with 1,018 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calera MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 767 | C+ |
| Calera HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,018 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AL on state tests and graduation
The average commute for its 7,892 working residents takes 33 minutes, against 25.5 across Alabama. Jobs based here grew from 3,471 in 2013 to 5,036.
Most working residents leave Calera for work: only 7% work in town. At 33 minutes, Calera’s average trip to work is where Alabama’s towns sit at 25 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. 7.3% of Calera residents live below the poverty line.
| Calera | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 16% | 6.7% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.3% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $87,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Alabama is heart disease: 4.3% of its 11,852 adults have heart disease, against 7.3% statewide.
Calera beats the Alabama average on 14 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 11% of adults report frequent physical distress in Calera. Among 187 Alabama towns, just 8 have a lower share of adults who had a checkup this year than Calera.
| Calera | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 12% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 16% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 30% | 25% |
| What stands out | Calera | AL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.3% | 7.3% |
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 2.6% | 4.1% |
| More binge drinkers | 17.3% | 14.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
People 65 and older are 8% of residents (18% statewide). Calera’s median age is 33.9 years. Calera has grown 15% since 2020, to 18,992 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Calera | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 33.9 years | 39.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 37% | 23% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 25% | 23% | 22% |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.3 points. Across Alabama, 51.4% of residents are women. Median age: women 34.0, men 33.8.
| Calera | AL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.6% | 11.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.6% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.6% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 17.6% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 20.2% | 12.4% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 5.8% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 2.6% | 7.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.6% | 11.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24% | 30.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.4% | 20.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.8% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27.4% | 17.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 9.8% | 11.1% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Calera has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. The July high in Calera is 91°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 62% of U.S. communities. Since 1998, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Calera.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Within Alabama, it does better than 74% of towns.
| Calera | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12.6 per 1,000 residents | 17 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.6 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Only 8 of the 177 Alabama towns we compare have a higher median rent than Calera. The typical Calera home is worth about $255,000, up 1% in a year, 7% above the Alabama typical home.
| Calera | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,601 a month | $940 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 79% | 69% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Calera. Close and well known come first.
27 mi Stadium & arenaLegion Field
28 mi Stadium & arenaProtective Stadium
28 mi MuseumSloss Furnacesin town MuseumHeart of Dixie Railroad Museum
28 mi Stadium & arenaLegacy Arena23 mi Theme parkAlabama Adventure & Splash AdventureLegion Field: USGS, Public domain · Protective Stadium: Unknown, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sloss Furnaces: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Legacy Arena: AuburnShuffle, CC0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Calera
About 5 of every 100 Calera residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Alabama.
2% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
City in Alabama, United States
Calera is a city in Shelby and Chilton counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is the location of the Shelby County Airport. As of the 2020 census, Calera had a population of 16,494. It is within the Birmingham, Alabama, metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Calera.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Calera grades B+ overall, better than 68% of U.S. towns and #40 of 187 in Alabama. It grades B+ for health, C+ for safety and A− for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a C−.
Within Alabama, it does better than 74% of towns.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
2 notable people were born here, including Shanavia Dowdell and Hut Stricklin.
