Long-term kit
RL416 long-term radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Colbert County, Alabama
EPA puts Colbert County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and 36.2% of its 871 reported radon tests (2008 to 2017, laboratory totals) were at or above 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
36.2%
14.3 pts above AL
- Colbert
- 36.2%
- Alabama
- 21.9%
871 tests, 2008 to 2017
Median result
2.7pCi/L
Below action level
- Colbert
- 2.7 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017
Tests reported
871
4th of 27 by tests
- Colbert
- 871
- Madison
- 5,178
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2008 to 2017
EPA radon zone
Zone 1
Highest potential
- Zone 1
- 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors
Rank in Alabama
1 of 27
Top quarter
- Colbert
- 36.2%
- Colbert
- 36.2%
By share, of 27 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Colbert County
Starts at Colbert County's median, 2.7 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 2.7 pCi/L
Between 2 and 4 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 4 and aboveEPA says fix it
This result is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends considering a fix when the level is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. Colbert County's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.
The data
Colbert County, At a glance
Colbert County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Colbert County in
USGS geologic potential: High across 99% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Colbert County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
Under 2 pCi/L: 40%2 to 4 pCi/L: 24%4 pCi/L and above: 36%
Of 871 pre-mitigation tests reported to CDC, not homes in this area.
| Result band | Tests Measured | Share Measured |
|---|---|---|
| Under 2 pCi/L | 350 | 40.2% |
| 2 to 4 pCi/L | 206 | 23.7% |
| 4 pCi/L and above | 315 | 36.2% |
What these figures count
These are the 871 tests reported to CDC for Colbert County over 2008 to 2017 (laboratory totals), many from homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: they describe the county's reported tests, not this house.
Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2008 to 2017, laboratory. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).
Colbert County, Compared
Colbert County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411In Colbert County, about 4 in 10 reported tests over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals (315 of 871) were at or above EPA's action level. Against the national pool of 35.7%, the gap is 0.5 points higher. Across 65 Alabama counties pooled together, 21.9% of tests reached that level, so Colbert County runs 14.3 points above its state.
Of 3 neighbours with a figure, none reported a larger share at or above 4 pCi/L; the spread is 16.2% (Lawrence County) to 27.2% (Lauderdale County). By share, Colbert County is 1st of 27 Alabama counties with 30 or more tests for the same period.
Half the tests came in under 2.7 pCi/L and half over it; the single highest reached 139.0 pCi/L. Below the action level, 350 tests (40.2%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 54.3% statewide, and 206 tests (23.7%) fell between 2 and 4, against 23.8% statewide.
Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 36.2% share point the same way here. USGS geology rates 99% of the county's land high radon potential. CDC also counts 7 tests taken after mitigation in Colbert County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.
CDC's ten-year totals for Colbert County went from 1,039 tests (2005 to 2014) to 871 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 36.0% to 36.2%.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Colbert County, Geology
The ground under Colbert County
PredictedMost of the ground under Colbert County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 98.5% of its land is high radon potential, with 1.5% moderate. 98.5% of it lies in the area the map calls Interior Low Plateaus, to which USGS gives a radon index of 12, in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interior Low Plateaus | Mississippian carbonate rocks and shales. | High | 12 | 98.5% |
| Inner Coastal Plain | Marly sandy clay, chalk, and glauconitic sands. | Moderate | 10 | 1.5% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Colbert County beside the ground around it
Colbert County has more high-potential ground than Alabama as a whole: 98.5% of its land against 14.3%. Of the 4 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Lauderdale County comes nearest at 87.8%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Colbert County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Colbert County
- Alabama Radon ProgramAlabama Radon Program, run by Alabama Department of Public Health, answers questions about testing, mitigation and the rules in Alabama.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsAsk the program whether it has free or discounted kits, or compare kits you can buy.
- Compare kits
- See the Alabama directoryNo professionals are listed in Alabama yet. The state program can point you to registered testers and mitigators.
What Alabama's program says
- Phone
- (334) 290-6244
What it means
Colbert County, Questions
Questions about radon in Colbert County
Are radon levels high in Colbert County?
Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 36.2% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Colbert County, Alabama were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 2.7 pCi/L. Of 27 Alabama counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, none reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 21.9%.
Which counties border Colbert County?
Colbert County borders 4 counties: Lauderdale County, AL, Lawrence County, AL, Franklin County, AL and Tishomingo County, MS.
Products
Colbert County, Products
Testing a home in Colbert County
In Colbert County, 36.2% of 871 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 21.9% pooled across Alabama. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Colbert County is the one to know: a long-term test (more than 90 days) or a monitor, with a short-term kit for a first answer.
Test kits and monitors3
See every kit and monitor
Monitor
RadonScan-Plus USB-powered radon monitor with Wi-Fi
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Plug-in
- Wi-Fi
- Alarm
- Screen, app
First reading: Within 5 minutes
Short-term kit
RA100 short-term liquid scintillation radon test kit
- Lab fee extra
Method: Liquid scintillation
In home: 48 to 96 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Colbert County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Colbert County
Explore
Colbert County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Colbert County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Lauderdale County, ALEPA zone 1
27.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 2.2 pCi/L · 1,885 tests · 9.0 points below Colbert County
- Radon levels in Franklin County, ALEPA zone 1
18.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.4 pCi/L · 193 tests · 18.1 points below Colbert County
- Radon levels in Lawrence County, ALEPA zone 1
16.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.7 pCi/L · 154 tests · 20.0 points below Colbert County
- Radon levels in Tishomingo County, MSEPA zone 3
No CDC figure for 2008 to 2017; its page reads it against its own neighbours.
Colbert County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Colbert County
The Census Bureau estimates 59,474 residents in Colbert County for July 1, 2025, 2,168 more than in 2020 (+3.8%). That works out to 100 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Muscle Shoals, has 17,666 residents, 29.7% of the total. Together its 6 incorporated places hold 65.8% of those residents; the other 34.2% live outside any of them. Testing is reported here more often than across the state: CDC's 871 reported tests for 2008 to 2017 come to 14.6 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), against 2.4 for Alabama.
From Muscle Shoals to Leighton, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Colbert County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muscle Shoals | 17,666 | +7.9% | 29.7% |
| Sheffield | 9,416 | +0.3% | 15.8% |
| Tuscumbia | 9,332 | +3.2% | 15.7% |
| Littleville | 1,065 | +1.6% | 1.8% |
| Cherokee | 975 | +0.3% | 1.6% |
| Leighton | 669 | +2.9% | 1.1% |
6 incorporated places, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025).
Colbert County, Homes
Homes in Colbert County
Colbert County is a place of houses on their own lots: 77% of its 27,887 homes are detached single-family houses, against 69% across Alabama. Half of its homes were built before 1980, close to Alabama's 1985: 22% date from before 1960 and 26% from 2000 or later. 71% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Alabama: 70%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Colbert County | Alabama |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 27,887 | 2,316,192 |
| Detached houses | 77% | 69% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 7% | 12% |
| Mobile homes | 8% | 13% |
| Built before 1960 | 22% | 16% |
| Built since 2000 | 26% | 27% |
| Middle year built | 1980 | 1985 |
| Owner-occupied | 71% | 70% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.