Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Jasper gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $200K for a typical one, or 2.8 years of the Birmingham metro’s $71K median household income. It grades B− overall, 66th among Alabama's 187 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. Its crime rate is higher than 93% of U.S. towns, with 65 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. On the plus side, its schools outperform 84% of the state's. Jasper’s property crime rate is 34 per 1,000 residents, above both the Alabama town median (16.9) and the median of U.S. towns (9.9). On history, just 14 of Alabama’s 308 towns do better. Jasper is home to Bevill State Community College.
Where Jasper beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Bankhead House
Its founding year, 1815, comes before those of 94% of the Alabama towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 269 in 1880, 14,572 in 2020. The archive holds 30 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 3 maps from 1949 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Alabama), ordered by how far Jasper is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Jasper, 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 Jasper.
Jasper pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and draws workers from Birmingham and beyond.
8,925 jobs are based in Jasper, 1.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 4 of Jasper’s working residents works in town. 16% of residents live below the poverty line in Jasper. Since 2013, Jasper has lost 538 jobs, to 8,925 in 2023.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 28% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its A− for schools comes with an A for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $200K.
Its public schools are run by the Jasper City school district. Three of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Jasper High School, with 850 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maddox Intermediate SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–6 | Grades 4–6 | 643 | A− |
| Jasper High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 850 | C+ |
| Memorial Park Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades 2–3 | Grades 2–3 | 483 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AL on state tests and graduation
Property crime runs at 34 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Alabama rate, most of it theft. Reported crimes fell from 683 to 561 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The violent crime rate in Jasper is 4.5 per 1,000 residents. Jasper reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 93% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Within Alabama it is healthier than 53% of the 187 graded towns: much of Alabama scores lower on these measures.
Jasper beats the Alabama average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 44% of Jasper adults have high blood pressure.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 43% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 40% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 14% | 16% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 15% | 12% |
| What stands out | Jasper | AL |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.6% | 8.2% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.2% | 7.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 70% of U.S. communities. Since 1980, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Jasper.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 31.9°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 77% of Alabama places with climate records; July afternoons average 90.9°.
Jasper has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Jasper’s July high is 91°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 91°F | 91°F | 85°F |
| January low | 32°F | 33°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 35 to 64 are 30% of residents (38% statewide). 28% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 28% across Alabama.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 35.7 years | 39.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 26% | 23% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 28% | 23% | 29% |
54% women, 46% men
About 87 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.4 points). Across Alabama, 51.4% of residents are women.
| Jasper | AL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14% | 11.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.7% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.5% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.9% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.2% | 12.4% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.8% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.1% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.7% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.2% | 7.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.7% | 11.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.7% | 30.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 26.1% | 20.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.3% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16% | 17.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.1% | 11.1% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Homes are within reach (about $200K for the typical one, A for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 34 miles. At 2.8 years of the Birmingham metro’s $71K median household income, the typical home (about $200K) costs less against local pay than in 75% of Alabama towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living.
The typical Jasper home is worth about $200,000, up 4.1% in a year, 16% below the Alabama typical home.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $721 a month | $943 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 70% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
1.5 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Memorial Park, at 41 acres.
| Jasper | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.2% | 1.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Gamble Avenue Park | 0.4 mi | 8 |
| 2. Memorial Park | — | 41 |
| 3. North Jasper Park | 0.1 mi | 16 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Jasper
About 4 of every 100 Jasper residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Alabama.
5 places in Jasper on the National Register of Historic Places.
16 notable people were born in Jasper.
City in Alabama, United States
Jasper is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2020 census, Jasper had a population of 14,572. Named in honor of Sergeant William Jasper, an American Revolutionary War hero, Jasper was settled around 1815 and incorporated on August 18, 1886. The first significant growth of the area was in 1886 when the Kansas City, Memphis and Birmingham Railroad and the Sheffield & Birmingham Railroads were completed through Jasper. The population grew from 200 people in 1886 to more than 3,000 in 1890. In a special edition in 1891, the Mountain Eagle stated there were six coal mines, two sandstone quarries, 400 coke ovens, one foundry and machine shop, two saw …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Jasper grades B− overall, better than 45% of U.S. towns and #66 of 187 in Alabama. It grades C for health, D for safety and A− for schools. Safety 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.
16 notable people were born here, including Michael Rooker and Polly Holliday.
