It is located approximately halfway between Birmingham and Atlanta along Interstate 20.

Heflin was first settled in 1882 as a station on the railroad line from Atlanta.

In 1905, an election was held to move the county seat from Edwardsville to Heflin.

The election results favored Heflin and were appealed to and upheld by the Alabama Supreme Court on July 1, 1906.

Interstate 20 runs west to east through the southern part of the city.

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,431 people, 1,340 households, and 677 families residing in the city.

As of the census[9] of 2010, there were 3,480 people in 1,384 households, including 925 families, in the city.

There were 1,531 housing units at an average density of 93.9 per square mile (36.3/km2).

As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 3,002 people in 1,218 households, including 824 families, in the city.

There were 1,330 housing units at an average density of 112.5 per square mile (43.4/km2).