Birmingham equals Chile, Mobile matches Kuwait and Huntsville compares to Spain.

These are results when combining stats on income, education levels and life expectancy.

Introduced by the United Nations in 1990, the Human Development Index offers a composite score for comparing nations around the globe. StrategyWise, a data company in Birmingham, decided to apply the same measure within Alabama.

The highest scoring county in Alabama is Madison, comparable to Spain which ranked 26th out of 188 nations on the United Nation's Human Development Index.

Shelby County came in next, compared to Italy, one slot behind Spain. Lauderdale and Baldwin ranked third and fourth, roughly matched with Brunei.

Hover over a county to see the corresponding nation:

Most counties matched top-rated nations -- countries labeled as having "Very High Human Development." Another 21 counties scored a tier below with the designation of "High Human Development."

No Alabama county compared to the many developing nations rated medium or low.

Of course there exist deep divisions and inequities within counties. And some, like Jefferson County, see far more inequity than others.

Jefferson, the state's most populous county, came in 13th, just behind Montgomery County, to score alongside Chile.

Yet ZIP code 35223 in Mountain Brook (Jefferson County) received the highest score in the state, the only neighborhood in Alabama comparable to top-ranked Norway.

The next four highest ZIP codes in Alabama each compared to second-ranked Australia. Those were 35043 (Shelby County), 35741 (Madison County), 35114 (Shelby County) and 35213 (Jefferson County).

Ten ZIP codes in Alabama did fall to the level of "Medium Human Development." The lowest scoring ZIP in Alabama was 35774 in the Paint Rock Valley in the hills of Jackson County. It compared to Tajikistan.

To learn how your ZIP compared, click on the map below.