Jefferson County enjoys a diverse economy with legacy industries, bold new business ventures, tourism and cutting-edge tech startups driving investments, sparking innovation, creating new jobs and attracting visitors in the region.
Health Care
Health care remains a powerhouse in Jefferson County’s economy, bringing not only jobs, but also medical innovation, clinical trials and advanced training programs.
The largest health care entity in the county is the UAB Health System. With the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the UAB Health System is the state’s largest employer with more than 23,000, and it is a national leader in medical research and patient care.
In 2024, UAB Health System completed its $450 million acquisition of Ascension St. Vincent’s Health System, which included Ascension St. Vincent’s main and East campuses in Birmingham, hospitals in Blount, Chilton and St. Clair counties, the freestanding emergency department in Trussville and the One Nineteen Campus that provides rehabilitation therapy and specialty care.
The deal has solidified UAB’s dominance in regional health care delivery.
Jefferson County also is home to a wide network of other hospitals, specialty centers and affiliates, including Grandview Medical Center, Birmingham VA Medical Center, UAB Medical West, Cooper Green Mercy Health and Encompass Lakeshore Rehabilitation. Together, these hospitals and health care facilities employ tens of thousands and draw patients from across Alabama and the Southeast.
Technology and Innovation
In 2024, the global real estate services firm CBRE ranked Jefferson County’s largest city, Birmingham, No. 18 in emerging tech talent markets, up from No. 24 the previous year. The ranking reflects strong momentum in the county for attracting and retaining skilled tech workers.
That momentum is fueled by organizations like UAB’s Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, which turns discoveries and innovations developed at UAB into startup businesses and new products. In 2024, the Institute generated $6.5 million in licensing revenue and secured 17 U.S. patents.
Another organization is the business incubator Innovation Depot in Birmingham.
The Depot supports early-stage startups through business incubation, programs and co-working spaces as well as a membership that gives entrepreneurs access to resources and events.
In April, Innovation Depot debuted Boost Cohort 3, a program that gives founders who have validated their tech ideas the resources and support needed to move toward customer acquisition and business development.
The nonprofit scientific research organization Southern Research celebrated the grand opening of its new $98 million biotech center in Birmingham, which doubles the organization’s lab space.
A research partner of UAB, Southern Research is renowned for its work in drug development, including the development of seven FDA-approved cancer drugs and testing more than half of active chemotherapies in the United States. Southern Research employs 200 scientists and professional staff.
In addition, community-wide efforts, such as Sloss Tech and advocacy by TechBirmingham, put a spotlight on Jefferson County as a fast-rising hub for cybersecurity, biotech and software ventures.
Metals, Manufacturing and Advanced Materials
Despite Jefferson County’s rapid progress in the tech age, the region’s more traditional industries — steel and manufacturing — are still flourishing in the 21st century.
In January 2025, American Cast Iron Pipe Co., headquartered in Birmingham, acquired C&B Piping, a Jefferson County-based manufacturer and supplier of ductile iron and steel piping systems.
Longstanding industrial giants like McWane, which produces waterworks and plumbing products, and the steel fabricator CMC Steel in Birmingham, are continuing to modernize, employ new manufacturing techniques and expand product lines.
In the advanced manufacturing landscape. J.M. Smucker Co. opened its $1.1Â billion, 900,000-square-foot facility in McCalla in late 2024. The J.M. Smucker plant produces its popular Uncrustables brand. It has 375 employees with plans for up to 750 workers.
Meanwhile, steel pipe and tube manufacturer Zekelman Industries announced in 2024 that it would invest more than $6Â million toward its operations in Jefferson County and add 91 new jobs.
Mobility and Supply Chain
With the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham and rail lines and interstates 20, 59 and 65 crisscrossing its landscape, Jefferson County is a prime location for transport logistics and distribution.
Jefferson County is where companies like P&S Transportation and Amazon are leveraging the county’s location to efficiently supply markets across the Southeast.
In June 2025, the Birmingham Jefferson County Port Authority and the private firm Watco held a ribbon cutting for the new Port Birmingham Terminal. The new terminal is a 25,000-square-foot warehouse in Mulga that is designed to raise the storage and logistics capabilities of the inland waterway system in Alabama.
A new 1,100-acre industrial park is coming to unincorporated North Jefferson County. The Jefferson County Economic & Industrial Development Authority is developing the Jefferson Metropolitan North Industrial Park near the cities of Gardendale, Mt. Olive and Morris, just off Interstate 65 at Exit 275.Â
The EIDA reports that the new industrial park could lead to approximately 4,700 new jobs, an estimate based on the agency’s employment matrix from its JeffMet McCalla Industrial Park in west Jefferson County.
Higher Education
Post-secondary education maintains a massive footprint in Jefferson County with several two- and four-year colleges and universities for students to choose from. The schools create jobs and attract not only student dollars, but also research funding and investments.
UAB spans approximately 110 city blocks in Birmingham’s south side and beyond.
In 2023, the university reported 26,614 full- and part-time employees, making UAB Alabama’s largest single-site employer.
Its annual economic impact exceeds $12.1Â billion, with $774.5Â million in external research grants awarded in 2023 alone.
Other Jefferson County area colleges and universities also support the economy.
Miles College, in Fairfield, for example, added nearly $69.3 million in total economic impact and supported 641 jobs, according to a United Negro College fund’s 2024 report.
Jefferson State Community College provides technical training critical to local industries. For FY 2023-2024, Jefferson State boasted of a total annual economic impact of $574.5Â million, supporting 7,200 jobs in its service area.
Lawson State Community College reported a total annual impact of $368.1Â million, supporting 4,765 jobs in its service area.
Samford University in 2023 reported its annual economic impact at $453.3Â million, supporting 2,635 jobs across Alabama in FY 2021-2022.
Financial Services and Utilities
A top economic driver in Jefferson County is the banking industry. Birmingham-based Regions Financial Corp. is Alabama’s largest and among the nation’s largest full-service banks as well. Regions reported its second quarter of 2025 earnings of $534 million.Â
Birmingham-based ServisFirst Bank reported in its second quarter of 2025 $61.4Â million.
Among the utilities, the electric utility Alabama Power, a Southern Company subsidiary, serves 1.5 million customers across the state and employs more than 6,150 workers. Alabama Power’s 2024 net income was $1.4 billion, representing a $33 million, 2.4% increase from 2023.Â
Other utilities serving the region include AT&T and Spire Inc., and Bessemer Utilities, which manages water and electric services for citizens in Bessemer, Jefferson County’s sixth largest city.
Tourism
From theaters, museums and memorials to restaurants, sports venues and music halls, Jefferson County’s cultural and recreational assets make tourism one of its fastest-growing economic engines.
In 2024, tourism generated a record $2.57Â billion in economic impact, supporting 51,887 jobs and contributing $302Â million in state and local taxes, according to the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau.
In addition, the Greater Birmingham region had more than 4 million overnight visitors in 2024, a 2% increase from the previous year and the highest number since 2017.
In fact, Jefferson County accounted for 14% of Alabama’s total travelers and 11% of statewide tourism spending, making it the second-largest tourism market in Alabama.
Business Briefs:
AUGUST 2025: The fast-casual eatery Urban Cookhouse announces a new location at Stadium Trace Village in Hoover, just outside of Birmingham.
JUNE 2025: The health care performance improvement company Premier Inc. acquires the Birmingham-based health care technology firm IllumiCare.
JUNE 2025: Toronto-based NEEZO Studios, a creative marketing company that produces architectural scale models, animation and 3D real estate software, opens its first U.S. headquarters in Hoover.
MAY 2025: Brasfield & Gorrie, in Birmingham, holds a ribbon cutting for a three-story, 28,500-square-foot expansion next door to its existing headquarters in the Lakeview District.
MAY 2025: Special Shapes Refractory is one of five winners of the 2025 Governor’s Trade Excellence Awards for outstanding companies successfully exporting their products around the globe.
APRIL 2025: Birmingham software developer ProxyLink wins $75,000 in Alabama Launchpad’s first technology track competition. The company provides support to businesses whose customers use AI agents.
APRIL 2025: Heavy and medium-duty truck dealer Truckworx announces that it will build a new 12,000-square-foot headquarters in Birmingham. The $6.8 million project promises to create 52 high-paying jobs.
MARCH 2025: The Painted Lady Hotel opens in downtown Birmingham. The 22-room and suite establishment occupies the former Eyer-Raden Building in the historic automotive district.
SEPTEMBER 2024: Moxie Childcare opens its new Homewood Center. The startup provides childcare services for working parents on irregular schedules.
JULY 2024: Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair announces Zekelman Industries’ plan to invest more than $6 million to expand steel tube production at its Jefferson County facility, creating 91 jobs.
MAY 2024: Coca-Cola Bottling Company United Inc. announces it will invest $330 million toward a new facility in Birmingham’s Kingston community, creating up to 50 new jobs.
MAY 2024: The Central Alabama Redevelopment Alliance launches the Jefferson County Micro Business Accelerator, an initiative that provides resources for entrepreneurs.
OCTOBER 2023: CModel Data Inc. announces it is moving its headquarters from San Francisco to Birmingham. The tech-startup says it expects to create 80 jobs as it grows.
OCTOBER 2023: Stella Source, a software developer servicing the metal distribution and fabrication industry, announces its intention to expand in Birmingham with 50 full-time jobs.
DECEMBER 2023: Acclinate, a Birmingham digital health company tackling the underrepresentation of people of color in clinical research, announces its growth project that will add 25 new full-time jobs.
This article appears in the October 2025 issue of Business Alabama.
