Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Clayton’s best subject grade is an A for history; its weakest is a D− for incomes. 40% of residents live below the poverty line in Clayton, where Alabama’s towns sit at 16% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. No town in Alabama scores lower than Clayton on incomes. Clayton's schools rank among the lowest in Alabama on tests and graduation. On history, just 1 of Alabama’s 308 towns do better. Clayton's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 97% of U.S. towns. Clayton has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Clayton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Henry D. Clayton House| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Barbour County Primary School | PK–1 | 134 |
| Barbour County High School | 7–12 | 297 |
3,008 counted in 2010 and 2,265 in 2020; an estimated 2,195 in 2025.
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 Clayton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 400 in 1850, 2,265 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 2 maps from 1968 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Clayton, 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 Clayton.
Its public schools are run by the Barbour County school district. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barbour County Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–1 | Grades PK–1 | 134 | – |
| Barbour County High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 297 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AL on state tests and graduation
Clayton beats the Alabama average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 47% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Clayton, above both Alabama’s towns (40%) and U.S. towns (36%). 48% of adults have obesity in Clayton.
| Clayton | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 47% | 40% | 36% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 19% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 48% | 39% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 16% | 14% |
| What stands out | Clayton | AL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.1% | 8.2% |
| Fewer adults with depression | 19.5% | 23.3% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 16.7% | 9.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Clayton home is worth about $123,000, up 11.7% in a year, 48% below the Alabama typical home. 53% of Clayton households own their home.
| Clayton | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 53% | 69% | 73% |
| Median rent | $766 a month | $940 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The violent crime rate in Clayton is 5.5 per 1,000 residents.
| Clayton | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.5 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.4 per 1,000 residents | 16.9 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Clayton’s FEMA risk score is 24 of 100. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Clayton since 1995.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Clayton has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 91°, January nights drop to 37° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Of the 187 Alabama towns we compare, none has a lower median household income than Clayton. Since 2013, Clayton has lost 342 jobs, to 549 in 2023. Most working residents leave Clayton for work: only 8% work in town.
| Clayton | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $22,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1.6 miles of trail in 0 parks and preserves.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Clayton; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Clayton residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Alabama.
4 places in Clayton on the National Register of Historic Places.
16 notable people were born in Clayton.
City in and county seat of Barbour County, Alabama
Clayton is a town in and the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2020 census, Clayton had a population of 2,265.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. That is 2.7 years of the area's median household income ($44,925 across the Eufaula, AL-GA area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
16 notable people were born here, including Katherine Jackson and Ann Lowe.
