Living in Opelika, AL
Small city in Alabama
Opelika is a small city in Alabama, home to about 32,000 people, with 208,000 living within 31 mi. Day to day, most trips are by car. Life moves at a slow, calm pace, and homes are mostly houses.
Is Opelika a good place to live? Pros and cons
👍 Pros
- Low taxes: about $1,147 state income tax per resident, 0.51% property tax
- Affordable housing: a typical 3-bedroom home is about $294k and rents for $1,490 a month
- Low natural disaster risk: 7 federally declared disasters since 2000
- Strong healthcare: 3 top-rated (4–5★) hospitals within 31 mi
👎 Cons
- Quieter on culture: few museums and attractions nearby
- Fewer family amenities than most places
- Smaller job market: about 208,000 people live within 31 mi
- Fewer outdoor escapes: no big hills or water close by
Whether it's a good place for you depends on what you value. Take the quiz to see how Opelika ranks against your own priorities.
Key facts
Living in Opelika: common questions
What is the cost of living in Opelika?
A typical 3-bedroom home is worth about $294k, and a 3-bedroom rents for about $1,490 a month including utilities. Overall living costs are below the US average (index 88, where the US is 100).
What are taxes like in Opelika?
Alabama collects about $1,147 in state income tax per resident, and homeowners here pay about 0.51% of their home's value in property tax each year.
Is Opelika safe?
Opelika isn't in the FBI's 2019 city crime table, so Best Life Fit Me counts its safety as average.
How are the schools in Opelika?
Public schools in Opelika test below the US average in math and reading (2018–19 state tests, put on one national scale with NAEP), with about 16 students per teacher.
What is the weather like in Opelika?
Opelika has mild winters: winter days average around 58°F and summer days around 88°F.
Does Opelika get natural disasters?
Natural disaster risk is low, mainly from flooding: 7 federally declared disasters have hit the county since 2000, and FEMA expects about 0.37 deaths or injuries per 100,000 residents a year.
What is the nearest major airport to Opelika?
The nearest major airport is ATL, about 87 mi away.
How Opelika scores
Each bar compares Opelika with the other 1,990 places in Best Life Fit Me. A dot shows where it sits between two ends, such as major metro and small town; neither end is better. Coloured bars run from poor (red) to excellent (green).
Places like Opelika
These places have the most similar overall profile across all 24 aspects.
The circle is each place's all-round score out of 100: the average of its 15 quality scores, from red (poor) to green (excellent).
Nearby
Is Opelika right for you?
Answer 27 quick questions and see how it ranks against your priorities.