Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-10-09
53 of Alabama's 67 counties — 79% — have no county-wide zoning. That is the 5th-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Monroe County (84/100). Every entry below cites the county’s own official source.
Rules change, and cities inside these counties set their own — treat this as a verified starting point, not legal advice. All 1042 counties nationwide → Alabama: no building codes → Alabama: no codes, no zoning → Alabama: owner-builder → Alabama: rv living → Alabama: tiny homes → Alabama: no minimum home size → Full Alabama profile →
From the Alabama guide
Alabama has 53 counties without countywide zoning and 7 with zoning; countywide zoning remains unconfirmed in the remaining counties.41011 Counties without countywide zoning include Monroe County, Butler County, Marengo County, Lowndes County, Pike County, Washington County, Wilcox County, Clay County.4 Alabama counties lack broad general land-use regulatory authority, but local laws and special authority for flood-prone areas and airport hazards create exceptions.17
Alabama has 42 counties with neither a residential building-permit requirement nor countywide zoning.12 Compare the no-zoning list with the no-building-codes and no-zoning list. Keep septic approval on the purchase checklist: Alabama requires a local health-department permit before installing or repairing an off-sewer onsite sewage system regardless of the county building-permit answer.8
From the Alabama guide, written from the cited official sources and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: confirm with the office before you buy or build.
53 of 67 Alabama counties · sorted by Index score
County zoning in unincorporated Monroe County, Alabama. The official Monroe County hazard mitigation plan describes Alabama's state planning enabling statute as applying to muni…
Monroe County, Alabama Multi-Jurisdictional Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan ↗No county planning/zoning department or zoning ordinance is listed on the county government site.
Butler County Government ↗Countywide comprehensive or zoning plans administered by Marengo County. The source does not address zoning ordinances adopted by individual municipalities within Marengo County.
Marengo County, Alabama Hazard Mitigation Plan ↗General land-use planning and zoning authority in unincorporated Pike County, Alabama. The stated absence expressly excepts flood control and public street and subdivision regul…
Pike County Hazard Mitigation Plan Annex ↗County enforcement of a zoning ordinance in Lowndes County unincorporated areas. The cited statement appears in the county hazard-mitigation planning record and describes the st…
Lowndes County Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ↗No planning or zoning department is listed among the county's official departments, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Washington County, Alabama - Departments ↗The Wilcox County Commission's general authority to establish and enforce zoning or a comprehensive land-use plan in unincorporated Wilcox County. The Alabama Limited Self-Gover…
Alabama Legislation, Tenth Edition ↗No county planning or zoning department was identified on official sources; Alabama counties generally lack zoning authority in unincorporated areas absent a specific enabling act.
Atlas Alabama — Crenshaw County ↗Clay County has no county zoning ordinance or planning/zoning department; limited zoning exists only inside the cities of Ashland and Lineville.
Clay County Alabama Chamber - Local Government ↗Countywide zoning administered by Hale County; the official plan's jurisdiction table distinguishes Hale County from its incorporated communities. The cited official plan record…
Hale County 2015 Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ↗Conecuh County zoning ordinance and related countywide zoning program. The source identifies the county entry as not having the listed zoning ordinance/program in place or being…
Conecuh County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan ↗County zoning restrictions in unincorporated Randolph County outside municipal limits and police jurisdictions. Municipal regulations apply inside municipalities; the county doc…
Zoning & Permitting Regulations ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed on the county's official site; Alabama counties generally lack county-wide zoning authority in unincorporated areas absent a sp…
Perry County, AL (official county government site) ↗No countywide zoning; the county has no planning/zoning department and municipal ordinances do not extend into unincorporated areas.
Clarke County Commission Office ↗Zoning ordinance coverage in the unincorporated area of Pickens County, Alabama. The source is the 2015 plan update and identifies the table source as participating jurisdiction…
Pickens County Hazard Mitigation Plan: 2015 Plan Update ↗General-purpose zoning authority in unincorporated Bullock County. Flood-control rules, public-street rules, and any applicable municipal rules remain separate. The source state…
Bullock County Hazard Mitigation Plan ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed among Greene County offices; land-use regulation is left to the county's municipalities.
Greene County Commission - Directory ↗County zoning and building regulations within Geneva County's rural jurisdiction, including the County's unincorporated areas. All division of land in the County's unincorporate…
Road & Bridge – Geneva County, AL ↗The county's official notice states Dale County has no zoning codes in unincorporated areas; zoning exists only within incorporated cities/towns.
Dale County Road and Bridge - Building or Zoning Codes ↗County zoning restrictions and ordinances in the unincorporated areas of Coffee County, Alabama. Coffee County adopted subdivision regulations primarily related to streets and d…
Are there any zoning ordinances or building permits within the unincorporated areas of Coffee County? ↗The county's official departments listing includes no planning commission or zoning department, indicating no county-wide zoning in unincorporated Bibb County.
Bibb County, Alabama - Official Site ↗The county has no planning or zoning department; only the incorporated municipalities administer zoning, leaving unincorporated county land unzoned.
Franklin County Development Authority - Licenses & Permits ↗County zoning laws in Colbert County; this does not eliminate municipal zoning or other land-use controls. The statement was made by the Probate Judge during the May 2, 2023 reg…
Minutes of a Regular Meeting of the Colbert County Commission, May 2, 2023 ↗Unincorporated areas of Henry County, Alabama. Property inside a city limit must follow that city's specific rules and regulations. County subdivision regulations apply when a l…
Road & Bridge | Henry County ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed for Lamar County; Alabama counties lack general zoning authority in unincorporated areas without enabling legislation.
Lamar County, Alabama - County Government ↗County zoning in unincorporated areas of Jackson County, Alabama, outside municipal jurisdictions. The county statement applies only to areas not located in the jurisdiction of …
Zoning and Building Permits ↗No county zoning/planning department is listed; Alabama counties lack general zoning authority in unincorporated areas without enabling legislation.
Covington County, AL official website ↗Countywide zoning ordinances administered by Chilton County. The official plan identifies the statement under the Chilton County jurisdiction section. The source is a 2015 plan …
2015 Chilton County Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ↗Countywide county zoning and comprehensive zoning plans in Choctaw County, including unincorporated county areas. The official plan states that no plans have regulatory jurisdic…
Choctaw County Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan Update ↗No county zoning or planning department is listed among Marion County's departments; land use in the unincorporated county is not zoned.
Marion County AL - Official Website ↗No planning or zoning department or ordinance is listed among the county's official departments; land-use control appears limited to incorporated municipalities such as Brewton.
Escambia County, AL Commission ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed among Winston County departments; zoning applies only within incorporated municipalities such as Haleyville.
Winston County, Alabama - Official County Website (Departments) ↗The county exercises only subdivision regulation over land division; no formal countywide zoning ordinance was found on official sources.
Lauderdale County (AL) Subdivision Regulations ↗County zoning requirements in Coosa County, including the county's unincorporated territory. The cited county letter also states that identified parcels are not subject to count…
Coosa County Commission May-June 2021 Agenda and Minutes ↗County zoning regulations in unincorporated Cherokee County, Alabama The source limits the no-zoning statement to areas outside incorporated areas of the county. Paid contractor…
Zoning / Permitting - Cherokee County Commission ↗The county reports no building or permitting requirements and maintains no county zoning or planning department for unincorporated areas.
Fayette County (AL) FAQ ↗County zoning in unincorporated Mobile County. Municipalities may exercise permitting authority within their respective jurisdictions.
Development and Zoning ↗The county states it has no zoning rules or regulations except in the area around Walker County Airport (Bevill Field).
Walker County AL Engineering Department ↗Land outside municipalities in Autauga County. The official county statement appears in its 2014–2024 Solid Waste Management Plan's section addressing whether potential solid-wa…
Autauga County 2014 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan ↗Zoning in unincorporated Lawrence County, Alabama. Projects located within municipal limits must be directed to the applicable municipality. Lawrence County separately has subdi…
Zoning/Permits letter — Unincorporated Lawrence County, Alabama ↗Property located in rural, unincorporated Elmore County, Alabama. The source states that property inside a planning jurisdiction of any municipality should be addressed by the C…
FAQs about Elmore County ↗Unincorporated areas of Cullman County. Cullman County has subdivision regulations, logging ordinances, utility permits, driveway pipe installation permits, and floodplain devel…
Cullman County Zoning Letter ↗The county Public Works page lists subdivision regulations but no countywide zoning ordinance or zoning department; Alabama counties generally lack zoning authority in unincorpo…
Tuscaloosa County Public Works - Subdivision Regulation ↗County zoning rules and regulations in the unincorporated parts of St. Clair County, Alabama. State regulations require contractors to possess appropriate licenses. Flood-plain …
Zoning for unincorporated parts of St. Clair County ↗No county planning/zoning department is listed; the county administers only subdivision regulations (zoning-district documents found under blountgis.org are Blount County, Tenne…
Blount County Commission - Departments & Services ↗No county zoning department or zoning ordinance is listed among Calhoun County departments; unincorporated areas are not zoned by the county.
Calhoun County Alabama - County Departments/Forms ↗No county zoning ordinance found; Alabama counties require special legislative authority to zone and Chambers County only administers subdivision regulations in unincorporated a…
Chambers County, Alabama - Subdivision Regulations ↗County-administered planning and zoning throughout Limestone County. The official county page does not state that municipal zoning is absent. Incorporated municipalities may adm…
Doing Business - Limestone Co ↗The county's subdivision regulations reference a 'zoning resolution ... when they exist', indicating Morgan County has no general countywide zoning; land use in unincorporated a…
Morgan County Subdivision Regulations (2010) ↗No zoning or planning department is listed among Marshall County's departments; the county administers only subdivision review and a flood ordinance, indicating no countywide zo…
Marshall County AL - Marshall County Online (Departments) ↗Per the Gadsden/Etowah IDA, "Property in unincorporated portions of Etowah County is not zoned"; most municipalities have zoning ordinances.
Gadsden-Etowah IDA - Permits and Regulations ↗No countywide zoning; the county has no planning/zoning department, and zoning is administered within municipal limits (e.g., Heflin).
Cleburne County Commission ↗The county administers subdivision regulations but no county-wide zoning ordinance is indicated for unincorporated areas.
Talladega County Permits, Building & Development ↗Every county here has a full profile — water, land prices, hazard safety, seclusion, and the rest of its building rules. See the Alabama state page for all 67 counties ranked, or go back to the national list.
Off-grid gear
Building on land in one of these Alabama counties? The kit we'd start with:
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General guidance, not legal advice. Off-grid, building, and land-use rules are often set at the county level and change often. Verify with your county and state before acting. Data reviewed 2026-06-26.
