How Mobile fits into Mobile County and Alabama: the city, the county, Mobile County School District, the neighboring towns within 15 miles, and which one to call for what.

Mobile sits in Mobile County, Alabama. Three layers of local government share the work here, and knowing which does what saves time: the city, the county and the school district are separate bodies with separate budgets, separate boards and separate elections.

The city

The city of Mobile runs the police department, most local streets, parks, water and sewer where it operates them, zoning and building permits, code enforcement and trash and recycling contracts. The city council sets the property tax rate for the city’s share and adopts the budget each year. Council agendas are published before every meeting; we report from them on the news pages.

The county

Mobile County runs the courts, the jail, the sheriff’s office (which polices the unincorporated areas and serves warrants countywide), property records and the recorder or clerk’s office, elections, public health, and the county roads outside city limits. The county appraiser or assessor values property for tax; the county treasurer or tax collector collects it for every taxing body. Real estate transfers in our weekly column come from the county record.

The school district

Public schools in Mobile are run by Mobile County School District, an independent body with its own elected board, its own budget and, in most states, its own line on your property tax bill. District boundaries do not follow city limits: some Mobile addresses are zoned to neighboring districts, and the district may include parts of other towns. School board agendas and state report cards are the primary sources for our education coverage.

The neighbors

These are the places over 5,000 people within about 15 miles of Mobile, nearest first. We name them when a story touches them, with the distance:

  • Chickasaw (about 7 miles)
  • Prichard (about 8 miles)
  • Tillmans Corner (about 9 miles)
  • Semmes (about 12 miles)
  • Saraland (about 13 miles)
  • Satsuma (about 13 miles)
  • Daphne (about 13 miles)
  • Spanish Fort (about 14 miles)

Mobile by the numbers

From the 2023 American Community Survey five-year estimates (U.S. Census Bureau):

Measure Mobile
Population 185,097
Median household income $51,090
Median home value (owner-occupied) $170,300
Median age 37.7
Adults 25 and over with a bachelor’s degree or higher 31.5%

Estimates carry margins of error; treat them as a picture, not a count.

Who to call

  • Police non-emergency: the Mobile Police Department (emergencies: 911).
  • Outside city limits: the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.
  • Property records and deeds: the Mobile County recorder / clerk.
  • Weather warnings: the National Weather Service office for this area is MOB; we publish its alerts for Mobile as they are issued.