Best Places36512, AL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 36512, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
36512 ranks 27,485th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 36512
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
36512's strengths and weaknesses
Where 36512 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 95% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 36512 ranks low
- Short commute53.8 minutes each way, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- School gradeD, better than only 6% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 36512
A household needs to earn about $46,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 36512 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $84,800, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 36512's effective rate of 0.32%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 36512
36512 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 36512.
Who works in 36512, and how
Work in 36512 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 96%
- Work from home 1%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 36512
The coast is about 28 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 36512, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 36512, month by month
36512 sees roughly 86 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 39. The comfortable stretch runs February through May and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 51° | 39° |
| April | 80° | 67° | 55° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 74° |
| October | 84° | 70° | 59° |
Flying in and out of 36512
The nearest airport, Mobile Regional, is about 25 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 150 miles away.
The best schools in and around 36512
Schools across 36512 average a D, better than 6% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Bay Minette Elementary SchoolC · 32% proficient
- North Mobile County Middle SchoolD+ · 21% proficient
Top middle schools
- Bay Minette Middle SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Baldwin County High SchoolD · 22% proficient
- Citronelle High SchoolF · 9% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 36512 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
36512 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 36512 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 36512
Is 36512 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 36512 ranks 27,485th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, tree cover, and state infrastructure, and lowest on long commutes and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 36512 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $188,400. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $84,800 median income, cost of living beats 79% of zip codes.
Is 36512 safe?
Yes, 36512 is safer than 76% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $217 per resident a year.
Compare 36512 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 36512. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 36512 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
36512 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 36512: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 36512: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 36512: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 36512: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
36512 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.