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ZIP stands for Zone Improvement Plan. The codes went live on July 1, 1963.The lowest ZIP code is 00501 — the IRS in Holtsville, New York.The highest ZIP code is 99950, in Ketchikan, Alaska.Type 07734 into a calculator and turn it upside down: hELLO. It is Keansburg, New Jersey.12345 belongs to one company: General Electric in Schenectady, New York.The first digit is a region: 0 is New England and New Jersey, 9 is the West Coast, Alaska and Hawaii.Mr. ZIP, the cartoon mailman, was the mascot that sold the idea to America.ZIP+4 arrived in 1983 and can narrow a ZIP down to one side of one block.A ZIP code is a mail route, not a place: plenty of them cross county and even state lines.Play ZIP Hunt: guess the secret ZIP code of the day in six tries.
zipcodes.pro — ZIP/35242

35242

ZIP 35242 is in Birmingham, Alabama, mostly in Shelby County; area codes 205 and 659; Central time. Birmingham has 62 ZIP codes in all.

Type
Standard
Time zone
America/Chicago
County
Shelby +1 more
Metro area
Birmingham, AL
Population
57,374
Coordinates
33.4246, -86.6709
☼ Live from 35242 — Birmingham, AL

Weather right now

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Local time: —

Where 35242 is

Approximate ZIP boundary (Census ZCTA 2020). ZIP codes are mail routes, not areas, so the shape shown is the Census tabulation area that approximates it.

★ Weird and wonderful facts about 35242
  • 🔢 Type 35242 into a pocket calculator and turn it upside down: ZhZSE — not quite a word, sorry.
  • ➕ As a number, 35,242 = 2 × 67 × 263. Its digits add up to 16, a total 1,922 other ZIP codes share.
  • 💾In binary, the way a computer stores it: 1000100110101010
  • 🏠 Its numerical neighbours: 35238 (Birmingham, AL, 17 mi away) and 35243 (Birmingham, AL, 4 mi away).
  • 🔄 Backwards, 35242 becomes 24253, which is not a ZIP code at all.
  • 👥 29 other ZIP codes are made of exactly the same digits (22435, 22534, 23452, 24325, 24352, 24523, …). The farthest-flung twin is 54232 in Saint Nazianz, WI, 734 miles away.
  • 🧭 Farther south than 83% of all ZIP codes, and farther east than 52%.
  • 🎯794 miles southeast of the geographic center of the Lower 48, near Lebanon, Kansas.
  • 🌏 Dig straight through the Earth from 35242 and you would come out at 33.42°S, 93.33°E — 1,312 miles from Perth, Australia, the nearest big city to that spot.
  • ☀Longest day of the year: 14h 22m of daylight. Shortest: 9h 56m.
  • 📏 At 52.4 square miles of land, 35242 is bigger than 61% of ZIP codes — room for about 40 Central Parks.
🌙 The sky over 35242 today
  • Working out the sun…
🌋 Shake report
  • Checking the USGS…

Source: USGS.

People and housing

Population57,374This ZIP57,374
Households23,978This ZIP23,978
Housing units25,431This ZIP25,431
Median age43.6This ZIP43.6Alabama39.3US 38.9
Median household income$117,047This ZIP$117,047Alabama$63,999US $80,734
Median home value$477,700This ZIP$477,700Alabama$209,900US $332,700
Median gross rent$1,472This ZIP$1,472Alabama$1,007US $1,413
Bachelor's degree or higher65.8%This ZIP65.8%
Mean commute26.2 minThis ZIP26.2 min
Population density1,095.5 / sq miThis ZIP1,095.5 / sq mi

Business and tax activity

Business establishments1,809This ZIP1,809
Employees31,408This ZIP31,408
Annual payroll$2,182,787,000This ZIP$2,182,787,000
Tax returns filed26,740This ZIP26,740
Total adjusted gross income$4,743,141,000This ZIP$4,743,141,000

Land area

Land area52.37 sq miThis ZIP52.37 sq mi
Water area2.15 sq miThis ZIP2.15 sq mi

Counties 35242 spans

A ZIP code is a mail route and ignores county lines. Shares are by overlapping land area.

CountyShare of this ZIP
Shelby County 79.9%
Jefferson County 20.1%

Other place names in 35242

Census places whose land this ZIP code overlaps. The Postal Service may accept other city names in an address, too.

ZIP codes near 35242

ZIPCityDistance
35243 Birmingham, AL 4.2 mi
35223 Birmingham, AL 5.9 mi
35216 Birmingham, AL 6.8 mi
35213 Birmingham, AL 7.1 mi
35229 Birmingham, AL 7.6 mi
35043 Chelsea, AL 7.9 mi
35147 Sterrett, AL 8.1 mi
35210 Birmingham, AL 8.1 mi
35124 Pelham, AL 8.2 mi
35094 Leeds, AL 8.4 mi

Find every ZIP code within 10 miles of 35242 →

Questions about this ZIP code

Where is ZIP code 35242?

35242 is in Birmingham, Alabama, in Shelby County, part of the Birmingham, AL metropolitan area. Its published point location is 33.4246, -86.6709.

What county is 35242 in?

35242 spans 2 counties: Shelby County and Jefferson County. Most of it falls in Shelby County, measured by overlapping land area — the county holding the most land in a ZIP code is not always the one holding the most residents.

What area code is 35242?

Birmingham uses area codes 205 and 659, from NANPA's telephone records.

What time zone is 35242 in?

35242 uses America/Chicago.

How many people live in 35242?

About 57,374 people live in ZIP code 35242, in 23,978 households, at 1,095.5 people per square mile. These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area, not a headcount.

What is the median household income in 35242?

$117,047 a year, against $63,999 across Alabama.

What ZIP codes are near 35242?

The closest are 35243 (4.2 mi), 35223 (5.9 mi), 35216 (6.8 mi), 35213 (7.1 mi) and 35229 (7.6 mi).

Is 35242 a PO Box ZIP code?

35242 is a standard ZIP code. A normal ZIP code with street delivery.

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Cite this page

zipcodes.pro. “35242 ZIP Code — Birmingham, Alabama (Shelby County).” Data release 2026-10-12. Retrieved 2026-10-20. https://zipcodes.pro/zip/35242

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