Saint Clair County

St. Clair County, Alabama — key demographics

Population

• Total population: 91,103 (2020 Census)
• Latest estimate: ~93,700 (ACS 2019–2023 5-year)
• Growth since 2010: roughly +10–12%

Age

• Median age: ~40–41 years (ACS 2019–2023)
• Under 18: ~23%
• 18 to 64: ~59–60%
• 65 and over: ~17–18%

Gender

• Female: ~50–51%
• Male: ~49–50%

Race/ethnicity (2020 Census/ACS; shares rounded)

• White alone: ~88–89%
• Black or African American alone: ~7–8%
• American Indian/Alaska Native: ~0.4–0.6%
• Asian: ~0.4–0.6%
• Two or more races: ~2–3%
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): ~3–4% Note: Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity and may overlap with race categories.

Households and housing (ACS 2019–2023)

• Households: ~34,000–35,000
• Average household size: ~2.6
• Family households: ~73–75% of households
• Married-couple households: ~55–60% of households
• Homeownership rate: ~80–85%
• Average family size: ~3.0

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census and American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates.

Saint Clair (St. Clair) County, AL snapshot

• Population and density: ~92,000 residents; ~145 people per sq. mile, concentrated along the I‑20/I‑59 corridor in the Birmingham–Hoover metro fringe.
• Estimated email users: ~66,000 residents 13+ use email, including ~60,000 adults (≈82–85% of adults).
• Gender split among users: ~51% female, ~49% male, mirroring the county’s population.
• Age distribution among email users (est. share of users):
  • 18–34: ~24%
  • 35–54: ~38%
  • 55–64: ~20%
  • 65+: ~18%
• Digital access and trends:
  • ~85% of households have a home broadband subscription; roughly 12–15% lack home internet.
  • ~18–22% of households are smartphone‑only for internet access.
  • Adoption and reliability are strongest in the higher‑density western/southern suburbs; outlying eastern/northern areas see more DSL/fixed‑wireless dependence, with fiber build‑outs steadily expanding coverage.
  • Mobile coverage is broad along major corridors, supporting high email access via smartphones.
• Insights: Email usage is near‑universal among working‑age adults and remains high among seniors, driven by employment, schooling, healthcare portals, and ecommerce. As fiber and fixed‑wireless deployments extend beyond the interstate corridors, remaining access gaps—and thus email adoption differentials—are narrowing.

Saint Clair County, Alabama: Mobile phone usage snapshot (distinct from statewide patterns)

Top-line user estimates (2023–2024)

• Residents: ~92,000; adults 18+: ~72,000
• Smartphone users (adults): 63,000–66,000 (≈88–92% adoption among adults), slightly higher than Alabama’s adult average by ~2–4 percentage points, reflecting the county’s more suburban profile and higher household incomes
• Cellular-only internet households (smartphone or hotspot with no fixed broadband): 12–14% of households, below the Alabama average (15–18%), indicating less smartphone-dependency than the state overall
• Multiline/plan mix: Postpaid share is somewhat higher than the state average; prepaid reliance (common in rural/low-income parts of Alabama) is lower in Saint Clair’s I‑20/I‑59 suburban corridors

Demographic patterns

• Age
  • 18–34: Near-universal smartphone adoption (~96–98%); heavier app-based communications and video streaming; higher 5G device penetration than Alabama average
  • 35–64: High adoption (~90–94%); strong BYOD usage for work; hotspot use for commute corridors (I‑20, I‑59)
  • 65+: Adoption materially higher than Alabama’s statewide senior rate, in the mid‑70s to low‑80s percent range, buoyed by easier access to carrier retail and family plan add‑ons; still below younger cohorts in intensive data use
• Income and plan type
  • Higher-income tracts around Moody, Trussville-adjacent areas, and Pell City show more postpaid family plans, larger data buckets, and higher iPhone share than the Alabama average
  • Lower-income and more rural eastern/northern tracts exhibit more prepaid and smartphone-only internet reliance, but the county overall remains less smartphone-dependent than Alabama as a whole
• Race/ethnicity
  • Black and Hispanic residents are more likely than white residents to be smartphone-dependent for home internet (mirroring national patterns), but the county’s fixed broadband availability moderates these gaps compared with statewide levels

Digital infrastructure and coverage

• Network presence: AT&T, Verizon, and T‑Mobile all operate 4G LTE countywide with 5G available along primary corridors
• 5G footprint:
  • Mid-band 5G (notably T‑Mobile) is strong along I‑20 (Moody–Pell City–Riverside) and I‑59 (Moody–Springville), extending into population centers; this results in faster median mobile speeds than many rural Alabama counties
  • AT&T and Verizon provide broad 5G coverage with C‑band/Mid-band concentration near Pell City, Moody, and along interstate interchanges
• Terrain and gaps: Hilly terrain in the county’s northern/eastern areas creates localized dead zones and upland attenuation; coverage is robust near interstates and municipal cores but more variable on secondary roads and lake-adjacent pockets
• Capacity and congestion: Commuter peaks on I‑20/I‑59 can produce transient congestion; mid-band and carrier aggregation mitigate slowdowns in the most trafficked segments
• Public safety and redundancy: Multiple carriers with overlapping macro sites along I‑20 and I‑59 improve resilience compared with more rural state counterparts

How Saint Clair County differs from Alabama overall

• Higher smartphone adoption and 5G device penetration than the state average, driven by suburban demographics and proximity to Birmingham’s network investments
• Lower share of smartphone-only households than statewide, aligned with better fixed broadband take-up in suburban tracts
• Better mid-band 5G availability and capacity along primary corridors than many rural Alabama counties, producing more consistent high-speed mobile experiences for commuters
• Smaller prepaid share and higher family-plan/postpaid penetration than the Alabama average, reflecting income mix and carrier retail access

What this means for residents and providers

• Residents benefit from strong 5G along interstates and in city centers, with occasional coverage challenges off-corridor; a fixed-plus-mobile mix is common, reducing smartphone-dependency compared with statewide norms
• Providers see strong returns on mid-band 5G deployments along I‑20/I‑59 and in Pell City/Moody; targeted infill in upland/rural pockets would close remaining gaps and further distinguish the county’s performance from the Alabama average

Sources and methodology

• Estimates synthesized from U.S. Census Bureau (2020 Census, 2022 ACS 5‑year Computer and Internet Use), statewide adoption research, and 2024 carrier coverage disclosures. County figures are modeled from demographic composition and observed infrastructure patterns to ensure internal consistency with Alabama statewide benchmarks.

Saint Clair County, AL – social media usage snapshot (2025)

How many people use social media

• Population baseline: ~93,000 residents (U.S. Census estimate range for 2023–2024)
• Estimated users: ~66,000 residents use at least one social platform
  • Adults (18+): ~83% use social media
  • Teens (13–17): ~95% use social media
• Share of total population using social media: ~71%

Age profile (adoption rates)

• 13–17: ~95%
• 18–29: ~90%
• 30–49: ~82%
• 50–64: ~69%
• 65+: ~40%

Gender breakdown

• Users roughly mirror county population: ~51% women, ~49% men
• Platform skew (directional): women over-index on Facebook and Pinterest; men over-index on Reddit and X (Twitter). Overall usage rates are otherwise similar by gender.

Most-used platforms (adults; percent of adults who use each)

• YouTube: ~83%
• Facebook: ~68%
• Instagram: ~47%
• TikTok: ~33%
• Snapchat: ~30%
• Pinterest: ~30%
• LinkedIn: ~30%
• X (Twitter): ~23%
• Reddit: ~20% Teen platform mix (13–17) for context: YouTube ~93%, Instagram ~62%, TikTok ~63%, Snapchat ~60%

Behavioral trends observed in suburban Alabama counties of similar profile (applicable to Saint Clair County)

• Facebook is the community hub: strong activity in local groups (schools, youth sports, churches, buy/sell/trade, weather alerts), with Marketplace driving frequent transactional use
• Short-form video dominates discovery: TikTok and Reels fuel entertainment, local food/small business discovery, and events; content peaks late afternoon and evenings
• YouTube is the how-to and lifestyle channel: DIY, home/auto, outdoor and lake-life content, and high-school sports highlights are sticky; growing connected‑TV viewing
• Messaging first: Instagram DMs, Snapchat, and Facebook Messenger are primary for one-to-one and small-group coordination
• Mobile-first behavior: the vast majority of engagement is on smartphones; vertical video and Stories formats outperform static posts
• Timing patterns: weekday spikes around 7–9am, 12–1pm, and 7–10pm; weekend peaks Saturday midday/afternoon; local weather/news events generate sharp surges on Facebook
• Commerce and lead gen: Facebook/Instagram drive top-of-funnel awareness for local services and retail; Marketplace and boosted local posts convert interest efficiently; reviews and recommendations in groups heavily influence decisions

Method and sources

• County population from U.S. Census Bureau estimates; adoption rates and platform shares from Pew Research Center’s 2023–2024 U.S. social media usage studies applied to the county’s population mix to produce local estimates.