Mobile County, Alabama

Mobile County, Alabama
County
Mobile Government Plaza in Mobile
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Interactive map of Mobile County, Alabama
Coordinates: 30°47′11″N 88°12′50″W
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	December 18, 1812
Named for	Mobile Bay
Seat	Mobile
Largest city	Mobile
Area
• Total	1,644 sq mi (4,260 km2)
• Land	1,229 sq mi (3,180 km2)
• Water	415 sq mi (1,070 km2)  25.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	414,809
• Estimate  (2025)	411,658
• Density	337.5/sq mi (130.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts	1st, 2nd
Website	mobilecountyal.gov
County Number 02 on Alabama license plates One of three counties shuffled to the top 3 numbers because of population size

Mobile County (/moʊˈbiːl/ moh-BEEL) is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is the third-most populous county in the state after Jefferson and Madison counties. As of the 2020 census, its population was 414,809. Its county seat and largest city is the states second-largest city, Mobile, which was founded as a deepwater port on the Mobile River. The only such port in Alabama, it has long been integral to the economy for providing access to inland waterways as well as the Gulf of Mexico.

The city, river, and county were named in honor of Maubila, a village of the paramount chief Tuskaloosa of the regional Mississippian culture. In 1540 he arranged an ambush of soldiers of Hernando de Soto's expedition in an effort to expel them from the territory. The Spaniards were armed with guns and killed many of the tribe. Mobile County and Washington County, Alabama make up the Mobile Metropolitan Statistical Area with a 2020 population of 430,197. The Mobile, AL MSA and Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL MSA make up the much larger Mobile-Daphne-Fairhope CSA with a 2020 population of 661,964.

The MOWA Band of Choctaw Indians reside in the northern border area of the county. Their oral traditions narrate undocumented descent from Choctaw who avoided Indian Removal.