Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-08-08
54 of Alabama's 67 counties — 81% — have no county-wide zoning. That is the 3rd-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Monroe County (81/100). 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 969 counties nationwide → Alabama: no building codes → Alabama: no codes, no zoning → Full Alabama profile →
54 of 67 Alabama counties · sorted by Index score
Zoning is administered only within municipalities like Monroeville; Monroe County has no county zoning or planning department for unincorporated areas.
City of Monroeville Planning & Zoning ↗No county planning/zoning department or zoning ordinance is listed on the county government site.
Butler County Government ↗Lowndes County has no planning or zoning department listed and Alabama counties generally lack zoning authority in unincorporated areas absent specific enabling legislation.
Lowndes County, AL - County Commission ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed on the official county site, consistent with Alabama counties generally lacking zoning authority over unincorporated areas abse…
Marengo County, AL — Other Departments (official county site) ↗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 ↗No planning or zoning department is listed among county offices; land-use zoning is generally absent in unincorporated rural Alabama counties.
Wilcox County, Alabama - Official Website ↗No planning or zoning department is listed among the county's official departments, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Washington County, Alabama - Departments ↗No county zoning/planning department is listed; Alabama counties lack general zoning authority in unincorporated areas without enabling legislation.
Covington County, AL official website ↗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 ↗No county zoning or planning department or ordinance is listed among Hale County's departments and services.
Hale County Commission official website ↗Alabama counties have no general zoning authority in unincorporated areas absent a special legislative act; Pike County has no county zoning or planning department.
Alabama Home Builders Licensure Board - Building laws and codes (county authority) ↗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 ↗The state-hosted county mitigation plan states that the Conecuh County Commission would need a local legislative act to enact zoning and reports no current county zoning ordinance.
Alabama EMA - Division A Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan ↗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) ↗County land regulation is limited to floodplain, subdivision, and timber matters; no countywide zoning districts are established for unincorporated areas.
Randolph County - Zoning & Permitting Regulations ↗No countywide zoning; the county has no planning/zoning department and municipal ordinances do not extend into unincorporated areas.
Clarke County Commission Office ↗No planning or zoning department appears in Pickens County's official government listing, consistent with Alabama counties lacking general zoning authority over unincorporated l…
Pickens County Alabama - Government ↗Zoning is administered by the municipalities of Union Springs and Midway; there is no county-level zoning authority in unincorporated Bullock County.
Bullock County, Alabama (official county website) ↗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 ↗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 states there are no zoning restrictions or ordinances within unincorporated areas, aside from subdivision/floodplain regulations.
Coffee County Commission FAQ ↗No countywide zoning ordinance or planning/zoning department is listed among Geneva County's official departments; Alabama counties generally lack zoning authority in unincorpor…
Geneva County Commission (official county website) ↗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 ↗No planning or zoning department is listed among county departments; Alabama counties generally lack general zoning authority in unincorporated areas.
Colbert County Departments ↗The county's official department listing includes no planning commission or zoning department, indicating no county-wide zoning in unincorporated Henry County.
Henry County, AL - Courthouse and Government Directory ↗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 ↗Same county page states the county does not have zoning laws (outside municipal jurisdictions).
Jackson County AL - Zoning and Building Permits ↗No planning or zoning department appears among the county's official departments, consistent with Alabama counties lacking general zoning authority in unincorporated areas absen…
Choctaw County, Alabama - Official Website ↗Alabama counties generally have no general zoning authority absent special enabling legislation; Macon County's Compliance Office regulates nuisances only and no countywide zoni…
Macon County, AL - Compliance Office ↗No county planning/zoning department exists; Chilton County does not administer countywide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Chilton County, Alabama (official site) ↗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 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 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 ↗The county directs zoning questions to the municipality where the property is located, indicating no countywide zoning over unincorporated areas.
Coosa County, Alabama - Official Website ↗The county reports no building or permitting requirements and maintains no county zoning or planning department for unincorporated areas.
Fayette County (AL) FAQ ↗No countywide zoning in unincorporated Cherokee County; zoning applies only within incorporated city limits.
Cherokee County Commission - Zoning / Permitting ↗Per the county Development and Zoning page: 'There is no zoning in the unincorporated areas of Mobile County' (municipalities zone within their own jurisdictions).
Mobile County 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 ↗County Property Development lists only subdivision and flood-damage-prevention regulations; no countywide zoning ordinance or zoning department is identified.
Autauga County - Property Development ↗County FAQ states there are no zoning restrictions for property located in rural Elmore County.
Elmore County Commission - FAQs ↗Unincorporated Lawrence County has no zoning regulations for residential structures (zoning/building control applies within cities such as Moulton).
Lawrence County Commission - Departments ↗No county planning/zoning department or countywide zoning ordinance is listed on the Cullman County government site; the county administers subdivision regulations rather than z…
Cullman County Commission ↗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 ↗No county planning or zoning department appears on the official departments page; the County Engineer administers subdivision regulations and utility permits, but no countywide …
St. Clair County AL - Departments ↗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 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 ↗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 ↗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 ↗Unincorporated Limestone County has no county-wide zoning ordinance; land-use regulation applies only within incorporated municipalities.
Zoneomics - Limestone County Unincorporated Zoning ↗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) ↗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.
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.
