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ZIP Code36305

Dothan, AL

Houston County · Alabama · United States
Home to 17,592 people across 30.983 square miles.

Central12 ZIPs in county

At a glance

36305 by the numbers

Every figure below comes from the 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the Census Gazetteer, or is computed from those. Margins of error are shown where they matter.

Population
18k
±1,032 · top 25% nationally
Median household income
$81,438
US median $70,109 · 67th pctile
Median home value
$236,000
US median $207,500 · 58th pctile
Median age
42.1
US median 42 years
Population density
568/mi²
73th pctile most dense
Land area
30.983 mi²
plus 0.061 mi² water

Location

Where 36305 is

31.204572, -85.496004 · Census ZCTA internal pointOpen larger map →
Coordinates31.204572, -85.496004
Time zoneAmerica/Chicago
CountyHouston County
StateAlabama (AL)
Land area30.983 mi²
Coordinate sourceCensus ZCTA internal point

Local time

America/Chicago

—:—:—

Current weather

Live from the National Weather Service

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Distance to major cities

Straight-line, computed from coordinates

Atlanta, GA187.3 mi
Miami, FL495.0 mi
Houston, TX596.1 mi
Dallas, TX670.8 mi

People

Who lives in 36305

17,592 residents in 6,812 households, averaging 2.58 people per household. The largest age group is under 18 at 23.6% of residents.

Age distribution

Share of residents by age band

Under 1823.6%
18-247.6%
25-349.5%
35-4413.4%
45-5413.4%
55-6415.2%
65+17.4%

Households

Composition and size

Total households6,812
Average household size2.58
Family households68.9%
Living alone28.2%
Median age42.1 years
Households with internet90.9%

Race & ethnicity

Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.

White79.1%
Black11.9%
Asian1.6%
Native American0.1%
Pacific Islander0.1%
Other3.3%
Two or more3.8%
Hispanic / Latino5.7%

Income & work

What people earn in 36305

The median household here earns $81,438 a year, above the US median of $70,109, which puts 36305 ahead of 67% of American ZIP codes. 7.9% of residents live below the poverty line.

Compared to the US

This ZIP against the national median

Median household income$81,438
LowestHighest
Higher than 67% of all US ZIP codes.
Median household income$81,438 ±$3,173
Per capita income$43,236
Poverty rate7.9%
Unemployment rate3.2%
Labor force participation61.9%

Household income distribution

Share of households in each bracket

<$25k12.3%
$25-50k18.0%
$50-75k16.2%
$75-100k14.7%
$100-150k19.9%
$150-200k8.7%
$200k+10.3%

Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 34.5% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 92.1% finished high school.

Housing

Homes and rent in 36305

A typical home is valued at $236,000, and median rent runs $1,120 a month. This is an owner-majority area — 67.6% of occupied homes are owned, and the typical building went up in 1997.

Costs

Typical values

Median home value$236,000
Median gross rent$1,120/mo
Median year built1997
Housing units7,453
Vacancy rate8.6%

Own vs. rent

Of 6,812 occupied units

Owner-occupied67.6%
Renter-occupied32.4%
Owner households4,606
Renter households2,206

Building types

Units by structure size

Single family76.4%
2-4 units5.3%
5-19 units10.6%
20+ units7.6%
Mobile / other0.1%

Getting to work

How 36305 commutes

89.0% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 23.3 minutes.

Mode of transport

Workers 16 and older

Drove alone89.0%
Carpooled6.3%
Walked0.4%
Worked from home3.8%

Travel time

Mean commute 23.3 minutes

<10 min12.6%
10-1942.2%
20-2921.9%
30-4413.3%
45-595.9%
60+4.2%

Overview

Understanding ZIP code 36305

ZIP code 36305 is assigned to Dothan, AL, and falls within Houston County. Like every US postal code, it began as a mail-routing device rather than a geographic boundary — the US Postal Service groups delivery routes under a single code so carriers and sorting equipment can process mail efficiently. Today it also serves as a practical shorthand for the area itself: roughly 17,592 people live inside it.

At 568 residents per square mile spread over 30.983 square miles, 36305 reads as a small-town area. It is a mid-sized postal code by population, and density shapes almost everything else on this page — how people get to work, whether they own or rent, and what housing costs.

Household earnings track close to the national picture. The median of $81,438 puts 36305 near the middle of the pack, ahead of 67% of them. The US median for comparison is $70,109. Bear in mind that median income describes the midpoint household, not the average — it is not pulled upward by a handful of very high earners the way a mean would be.

Living here

What life in Dothan looks like

Housing in 36305 costs close to the national median. A typical home is valued at $236,000 against a US median of $207,500, and median gross rent runs $1,120 a month. The split between owning and renting is fairly even at 67.6% owner-occupied, which tends to indicate a mix of housing types rather than one dominant form.

The building stock is dominated by detached single-family houses, which account for 76.4% of housing units here. The median construction year is 1997, making the housing here from the later twentieth century.

The population skews broadly in line with the national age profile, with a median age of 42.1 against 42 nationally. The average household holds 2.58 people, and 68.9% are family households.

Getting to work takes 23.3 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 89.0% of workers.

Where to stay

Where to stay in Dothan, AL

Dothan is a smaller community, so options inside 36305 may be limited to a handful of independent inns, motels or bed-and-breakfast properties. Travellers often widen the search to the surrounding area, where the choice is greater and prices are usually competitive.

Median rent in 36305 is $1,120 a month, which sits in the middle of the national range; accommodation pricing locally tends to be similarly mid-market. For reference, Atlanta, GA is about 187.3 miles away in a straight line, which is worth factoring in if you are comparing a stay here against one closer to the city centre.

Availability and pricing change constantly, so the live search below will give you a more accurate picture than any figure we could publish here. It opens results for this area on Booking.com.

Book a Hotel →

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Practical uses

What ZIP code 36305 is used for

Beyond addressing mail, 36305 does a lot of quiet administrative work. Retailers use it to calculate shipping and sales tax at checkout. Insurers use it to set premiums, since risk profiles vary geographically. Employers and marketers use it to define service areas. Government agencies use it to route benefits and organise reporting. If you have ever been asked for a postal code by a form that clearly does not intend to send you anything, this is why.

For anyone weighing a move, 36305 offers a compact profile of Dothan: 17,592 residents, a median household income of $81,438, 34.5% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 3.2%. A handful of figures like these answer more relocation questions than most neighbourhood guides do.

One caution worth repeating: a postal code is not a neighbourhood. 36305 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in Dothan may be split across more than one code. Boundaries also shift as USPS adjusts delivery routes. Treat the figures here as describing a delivery area, which is what they actually measure.

Nearby

ZIP codes near 36305

The eight closest postal codes by centroid distance, each with its own full profile. You can also browse every Alabama ZIP code or use the ZIP Express Lookup to search by city, county or time zone.

Other ZIP codes in Dothan

Dothan is served by 5 postal codes.

More in Houston County

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Questions

Common questions about 36305

What city is ZIP code 36305 in?
36305 serves Dothan, Alabama, in Houston County, United States.
What is the population of 36305?
About 17,592 people live in ZIP code 36305, according to the US Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. The margin of error on that figure is ±1,032. That works out to roughly 568 people per square mile.
What is the average income in 36305?
The median household income in 36305 is $81,438 per year, compared with a US median of $70,109. Per capita income is $43,236. Median income is more representative than an average because it isn't skewed by a small number of very high earners.
How expensive is housing in 36305?
The median home value is $236,000 and median gross rent is $1,120 a month. 67.6% of occupied homes are owner-occupied.
Is 36305 a good place to live?
That depends on what you're looking for, but here are the facts: 34.5% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, the unemployment rate is 3.2%, and the median age is 42.1. The average commute is 23.3 minutes. We publish the numbers and let you weigh them.
What time zone is 36305 in?
36305 observes Central Time (America/Chicago). This zone observes daylight saving time.
How big is ZIP code 36305?
ZIP code 36305 covers 30.983 square miles of land plus 0.061 square miles of water, per the US Census Bureau's 2023 Gazetteer files.
Is 36305 urban, suburban or rural?
By population density, 36305 reads as a small-town area. It holds 568 people per square mile across 30.983 square miles of land. For reference, densities above 10,000 per square mile generally indicate an urban core, 1,000–3,000 is typically suburban, and under 200 is rural. These are rules of thumb rather than official designations — the Census Bureau classifies urban and rural areas by census block, not by ZIP code.
How much is rent in 36305?
Median gross rent in 36305 is $1,120 a month, according to the American Community Survey. Gross rent includes contract rent plus the estimated cost of utilities and fuels, so it is closer to what a tenant actually pays than a headline rent figure. Of 6,812 occupied homes here, 2,206 are rented.
What is the commute like from 36305?
The average one-way commute from 36305 takes about 23.3 minutes. The most common way to travel is drove alone, used by 89.0% of workers aged 16 and over. Commute figures cover people who were employed and working outside the home during the survey period.
How many people work in 36305?
About 8,281 residents of 36305 are employed. Labor force participation stands at 61.9% and the unemployment rate is 3.2%. Note this counts residents by where they live, not by where they work — a ZIP with many offices can have far more jobs than employed residents.
Where should I stay when visiting 36305?
Accommodation in and around Dothan, AL ranges with the character of the area. See the 'Where to stay' section on this page for local context, and use the live search there for current availability and pricing.
Does 36305 cover more than one city or county?
This page lists Dothan as the primary place and Houston County as the county. ZIP codes follow mail delivery routes rather than municipal or county lines, so a single code can straddle boundaries, and USPS also recognises alternate acceptable city names for many codes. If you need the definitive answer for a specific street address, the USPS ZIP Code Lookup is the authority.
Can ZIP code 36305 change?
Yes. USPS adjusts ZIP codes as delivery volumes shift — codes are occasionally split, merged, retired or newly created, and boundaries move more often than most people assume. The Census Bureau's ZCTA definitions, which underpin the demographic figures on this page, are redrawn only once a decade, so the two can drift apart between censuses.

Methodology

Where this data comes from

  • Postal geography — GeoNames open postal code database (CC BY 4.0), cross-checked against the US Census Gazetteer.
  • Demographics, income, housing, commute — US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 36305. Tables B01001, B01002, B01003, B02001, B03003, B08301, B08303, B11001, B15003, B17001, B19001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25024, B25035, B25064, B25077, B28002.
  • Land and water area — US Census Bureau 2023 Gazetteer Files.
  • Weather — NOAA National Weather Service, fetched live in your browser.
  • Map — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
On accuracy. ACS figures are survey estimates, not counts. The margin of error shown alongside the population figure means the true value has a 90% chance of falling in that range. For small ZIP codes the error can be large relative to the estimate — treat the direction as more reliable than the exact number. This page reports data for ZCTA 36305, the Census approximation of the USPS delivery area.