What is the median rent in Rainbow City, AL?

Name: Median rent in Rainbow City, AL, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Rainbow City, AL is $1,048 (±$67) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 1,321 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Rainbow City, the median gross rent went from $797 in 2015–2019 to $1,048 in 2020–2024 (+31.5%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,048 (±$67)
Rented homes: 1,321 (±287)
$2,000 or more: 3.6%
Since 2015–2019: +31.5%

How much rent costs in Rainbow City

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Rainbow City	Etowah County	Alabama	United States
Less than $500	3.3% (±3.8 points)	15.1%	10.0%	6.3%
$500 to $999	39.1% (±12.4 points)	53.3%	39.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	47.5% (±12.6 points)	25.7%	34.1%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	6.4% (±4.6 points)	4.4%	11.5%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	0.0% (±3.0 points)	0.6%	3.4%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	0.0% (±3.0 points)	0.2%	0.7%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	3.6% (±4.0 points)	0.7%	0.9%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,000 to $1,499, paid by 47.5% of renting households.

3.6% of rented homes in Rainbow City cost $2,000 or more a month.

Rainbow City against Etowah County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Rainbow City	Etowah County	Alabama	United States
Median gross rent	$1,048 (±$67)	$847 (±$44)	$1,007 (±$8)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	1,321 (±287)	8,982 (±589)	535,330 (±6,270)	42,849,984

In Rainbow City, median gross rent is higher than in Etowah County ($847).

It is not measurably different from Alabama ($1,007).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

In Etowah County, Rainbow City ranks 4 of 12 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 94 of 424.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Rainbow City has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$797 (±$53)	$1,048 (±$67)	+31.5%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	40.0% (±5.4 points)	34.4% (±5.7 points)	−5.6 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	11.4% (±7.3 points)	5.0% (±4.2 points)	−6.4 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Rainbow City

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Rainbow City
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Rainbow City	—	$1,048 (±$67)	—
Attalla	4.5 mi	$743 (±$185)	Lower
Southside	4.6 mi	$1,184 (±$132)	Not measurably different
Steele	6.2 mi	$739 (±$509)	Not measurably different
Gadsden	6.6 mi	$808 (±$42)	Lower
Glencoe	8.7 mi	$736 (±$175)	Lower
Ohatchee	10 mi	$796 (±$77)	Lower
Reece City	11 mi	$1,139 (±$197)	Not measurably different
Tidmore Bend	12 mi	$1,257 (±$437)	Not measurably different

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Attalla, AL ($743), Gadsden, AL ($808), Glencoe, AL ($736).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Etowah County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
1	Tidmore Bend	$1,257 (±$437)
2	Southside	$1,184 (±$132)
3	Reece City	$1,139 (±$197)
4	Rainbow City	$1,048 (±$67)
5	Whitesboro	$1,028 (±$131)
6	Sardis City	$862 (±$138)
7	Gadsden	$808 (±$42)
8	Attalla	$743 (±$185)
9	Glencoe	$736 (±$175)
10 (tie)	Walnut Grove	$550 (±$237)

Showing 10 of 12 places in Etowah County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Rainbow City

What is the average rent in Rainbow City, AL?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Rainbow City is $1,048 (±$67) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Rainbow City?

In Rainbow City, the median gross rent went from $797 in 2015–2019 to $1,048 in 2020–2024 (+31.5%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Rainbow City cost more than $2,000 a month?

3.6% of rented homes in Rainbow City have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 3.3% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Rainbow City higher than in Etowah County?

In Rainbow City, median gross rent is higher than in Etowah County ($847).

It is not measurably different from Alabama ($1,007).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Rainbow City city, Alabama (place:63288, in state:01).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.