Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Grand Bay’s lowest grade is for walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 92% of U.S. towns. It also trails on schools: its schools rank behind 76% of the state's. Hazard risk is weaker too (D−): FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Cost of living is its strong suit: a typical home costs about $214K, 3.6 years of the Mobile metro’s $59K median household income. The overall grade lands at C, 88th of 187 in Alabama. Set against the rest, it does better than 32% of U.S. towns. Grand Bay Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · schools, state test and graduation results · FEMA National Risk Index · National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Alabama), ordered by how far Grand Bay is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Where Grand Bay beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Grand Bay Historic DistrictCensus counts: 3,185 in 1980, 3,460 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 1891 and 4 maps from 1943 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Grand Bay’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Ordered by what stands out in Grand Bay.
Grand Bay sends many workers across the state line to Pascagoula and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Alabama (mostly hurricanes).
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of Alabama towns; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
56% of Grand Bay’s expected losses from natural hazards come from hurricanes, followed by inland flooding at 32%. Federal aid has come to Grand Bay households in 8 declared disasters; the latest was in 2023.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The public schools here belong to the Mobile County school district. Its two schools are below. The 2 public schools in Grand Bay teach 1,174 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Bay Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 751 | C+ |
| Cora Castlen ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 423 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AL on state tests and graduation
37% of working residents cross a state line to work, Pascagoula among the top destinations. The average commute for its 1,319 working residents takes 47.6 minutes, against 25.5 across Alabama.
For most workers, Grand Bay is a place to come home to: only 3% work in town. Of the 186 Alabama towns we compare, none has a higher average trip to work than Grand Bay. 3.2% of Grand Bay residents live below the poverty line, where Alabama’s towns sit at 16% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. The top destinations are Mobile (35%), Pascagoula (11%) and Montgomery (2%).
| Grand Bay | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 48 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 3.2% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.9% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 41°, milder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 90.2°.
For Grand Bay, the typical July afternoon high is 90°F. Also worth knowing: in Grand Bay, the January low is 41°F, above both Alabama’s towns (33°F) and U.S. towns (22°F). Snow is a rarity.
| Grand Bay | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 41°F | 33°F | 22°F |
| July high | 90°F | 91°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
68.5% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.8% across Alabama.
Zillow values the typical Grand Bay home at about $214,000, up 0.9% in a year, 10% below the Alabama typical home. For Grand Bay, the median rent is $951 a month. The share of households in Grand Bay who are owner-occupiers: 74%.
| Grand Bay | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 74% | 69% | 73% |
| Median rent | $951 a month | $940 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The biggest park or preserve is Grand Bay Odd Fellows Festival Park, at 46 acres. Across 2 parks and preserves: 0.5 miles of trail. Its trail network density stands at 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Grand Bay | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 1.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Grand Bay Odd Fellows Festival Park | 0.3 mi | 46 |
| 2. Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Against the 9,441 U.S. towns with household incomes like Grand Bay’s, it is healthier than 73%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income. Within Alabama it is healthier than 72% of the 187 graded towns: much of Alabama scores lower on these measures.
78% of adults had a checkup this year in Grand Bay. Against the Alabama average, Grand Bay comes out ahead on 6 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 1. In Grand Bay, 34% of adults have obesity, and 36% sleep under 7 hours.
| Grand Bay | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 43% | 35% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 39% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 40% | 36% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 12% |
| What stands out | Grand Bay | AL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.5% | 9.6% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 10.3% | 13.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.3% | 8.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Grand Bay. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi MuseumUSS Alabama
24 mi MuseumUSS Drum
26 mi MuseumFort Morgan
24 mi MuseumBattleship Memorial Park
17 mi National SeashoreGulf Islands National Seashore7.6M visitors a year
22 mi LandmarkFort GainesUSS Alabama: USN, Public domain · USS Drum: Jean-Pierre Martin, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Morgan: Altairisfar, Public domain · Battleship Memorial Park: Rennett Stowe from USA, CC BY 2.0 · Gulf Islands National Seashore: National Park Service, Public domain · Fort Gaines: Altairisfar, Public domain
Grand Bay is unincorporated, so Mobile County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
None within 15 miles of Grand Bay; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Grand Bay residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Alabama.
Census-designated place in Alabama, United States
Grand Bay is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in southwest Mobile County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Mobile metropolitan area. The population was 3,460 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Grand Bay grades C overall, better than 32% of U.S. towns and #88 of 187 in Alabama. It grades B− for health and C− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
2 notable people were born here, including Harold Page Smith and David Sessions.
Ask a question, answer one, post a photo or an event. Free, and the parts only a neighbor would know are the parts worth reading.
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