Developed by backers of Henry Ford, who planned an auto plant in Muscle Shoals, it is located in Colbert County (North Region), just south of Florence along Highway 43 near the Tennessee River placing it as part of the Florence, Alabama metro area.
The city is home to a local recording studio producing "Muscle Shoals Sound" for Wilson Pickett, Percy Sledge, and other rock and soul musicians.
The Northwest Shoals Community College is the main part of the city providing higher education to all in the area.
