Living in Eglin AFB, Florida

Small place: Census estimates for places under 5,000 people have wide margins of error. Treat these figures as rough.

Unincorporated: there's no city government; Okaloosa County provides roads, zoning and law enforcement.

Nearest 24-hour emergency room

HCA Florida Fort Walton-Destin Hospital, in Fort Walton Beach, about 5 miles away.²

Straight-line distance from the town's center; driving is longer. Freestanding ERs and urgent care aren't counted.

Life in the Panhandle

Florida's far northwest: sugar-white Gulf beaches, Navy and Air Force towns, and a Southern pace.⁴

Hazards: Hurricanes hit hard here. Michael came ashore at Mexico Beach in October 2018 as a Category 5 with 160 mph winds and a storm surge about 14 feet deep, damaged every building on Tyndall Air Force Base, and was blamed for 50 deaths in Florida. It was the strongest landfall ever recorded on the Panhandle. Ivan in 2004 and Sally in 2020 also battered the Pensacola area.^4,5,6,7

Visitor information

Okaloosa County's official tourism office: Destin-Fort Walton Beach.⁸ Ask about local events, things to do and a free visitor guide, if they offer one.

Read the free Panhandle preview, including the region's state-certified visitor centers.

Other places in Okaloosa County

• Crestview · 28,773 people · home value $277,900
• Wright · 27,927 people · home value $306,100
• Fort Walton Beach · 21,025 people · home value $321,800
• Niceville · 16,544 people · home value $423,500
• Destin · 14,077 people · home value $490,300
• Lake Lorraine · 6,903 people · home value $434,500
• Ocean City · 5,941 people · home value $303,900
• Valparaiso · 4,885 people · home value $394,700
• Mary Esther · 4,061 people · home value $298,900
• Hurlburt Field · 2,951 people · home value not published

"Median" means half are above and half below. Figures are U.S. Census Bureau estimates for Eglin AFB as a Census-defined place; the area a mailing address calls Eglin AFB can be larger.