Mobile Zoning Intelligence
Zoning, permitted uses, and development potential for Mobile, Alabama. 28 districts read from the city's own zoning ordinance.
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Zoning districts are shown at zoom 15 and closer. Zoom out for the Mobile city outline and street context.
How is Mobile zoned?
Mobile replaced its old zoning ordinance with a Unified Development Code, adopted by the City Council on 12 July 2022 and in force from the first quarter of 2023. It is codified as Chapter 64 of the City Code and establishes 28 districts. Adopting the UDC did not change any property's zoning district and came with no map changes.
The UDC is published as separate articles rather than one consolidated document, and they carry different amendment dates, so parts of the code are newer than others. Article 2 holds the districts and their dimensional tables. Article 3 holds the development standards — parking, landscaping, buffers, lighting, building design — which means a district's own numbers are never the whole answer. Article 3 also does not apply everywhere: it is switched off inside the Spring Hill Overlay, inside the Downtown Development District, and for Planned Developments.
The detail that most often trips up a zoning lookup in Mobile is sub-districts. Most base districts are split into Urban, Suburban and Conservation columns, each with its own numbers, and the sub-district is shown on the zoning map alongside the base district. Urban covers areas generally developed before 1950, on a walkable grid with smaller lots; Suburban covers the post-1950 pattern with larger lots; Conservation applies where wetlands, flood zones or other sensitive features shape development. So a question like "what is the minimum lot area in R-1?" has three answers, not one — 6,000 square feet Urban, 7,200 square feet Suburban, and not applicable in Conservation.
Downtown is governed separately by Appendix A, the Downtown Development District code adopted 20 January 2026, where heights are stated in stories rather than feet. Our district data for Mobile is read from the adopted code, not from a commercial data vendor, which has no Alabama coverage.
What can you build in Mobile?
- Single-family permitted
- 19of 28 districts
Mobile, Alabama Zoning Districts: What Do They Mean?
Zoning districts are areas regulated by specific laws that determine land use, building types, and development rules. Each district below shows its zone type and which uses it permits.
| Zone Code | Zone Type | Permitted Uses |
|---|---|---|
B-1 B-1 Buffer Business | Commercial |
|
B-2 B-2 Neighborhood Business | Commercial |
|
B-3 B-3 Community Business | Commercial |
|
B-4 B-4 General Business | Commercial |
|
What are the building controls in Mobile?
Setback, height, FAR, lot area, and density controls enforced across Mobile zoning districts.
- Max building height (ft)
- Max coverage
- Max density du (per acre)
- Min front yard (ft)
- Min landscaped space (%)
- Min lot area (sq ft)
- Min lot width (ft)
- Min rear yard (ft)
- Min side yard (ft)
Other Alabama cities
Mobile zoning: frequently asked questions
- How many zoning districts does Mobile have?
- 28 under the Unified Development Code. Most of them are further split into Urban, Suburban and Conservation sub-districts with different dimensional standards in each, so the number of distinct rule sets is considerably higher than 28.
- What are Mobile's Urban, Suburban and Conservation sub-districts?
- They are three development contexts the code applies on top of the base district, each with its own column of numbers. Urban covers areas generally built before 1950 on a walkable grid with smaller lots. Suburban covers the post-1950 pattern with larger lots. Conservation applies where wetlands, flood zones or other environmental features drive the development pattern. The sub-district appears on the zoning map next to the base district.
- What is the minimum lot area in Mobile's R-1 district?
- It depends on the sub-district: 6,000 square feet in Urban and 7,200 square feet in Suburban, while the Conservation column does not set one. Any single number quoted without naming the sub-district is incomplete.
- Do the citywide development standards apply everywhere in Mobile?
- No. Article 3, which carries parking, landscaping, buffer, lighting and design requirements, does not apply inside the Spring Hill Overlay, inside the Downtown Development District, or to Planned Developments. Those areas run on their own standards.
- How is downtown Mobile zoned?
- Downtown is governed by Appendix A, the Downtown Development District code adopted 20 January 2026, which is the complete zoning code for that district. Its height limits are expressed in stories rather than in feet, and its district list supersedes the earlier one in Article 2.
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