What is the poverty rate in Kentucky?
Refreshed monthly
The poverty rate was about 15.6% of Kentucky’s population as of 2024. The poverty rate is the percentage of people whose household income falls below the poverty threshold set by the government. It measures the percentage of people in households that don’t earn enough to pay for basic needs like food, housing, and healthcare. In 2024, 694,171 people in Kentucky were considered in poverty.
15.6%
of the population (2024)
694K
people living under the poverty line (2024)
The state's poverty rate was 15.6% in 2024, the lowest based on data from the American Community Survey dating back to 2010. It was 0.8 percentage points lower than the previous year. Kentucky's poverty rate hit a peak in 2012 of 19.4%.
In 2024, 15.6% of Kentucky's population were living under the poverty line.
Poverty rate, 2010–2024
While the poverty rate shows the overall trend, the total number matters because many aid programs and funding decisions are based on how many people are in poverty, not just the percentage. In 2024, 694,171 people living in Kentucky were in poverty — down 15.7% from the 2012 peak of 823,197.
In 2024, 694,200 people in Kentucky were in poverty.
People living under poverty line, 2010–2024
Poverty doesn’t affect all groups equally. Rates vary widely by demographic group, family type and location.
What is the child poverty rate in Kentucky?
From 2014 to 2024, the poverty rate for children under 18 in Kentucky decreased from 26.2% to 19.3%. During the same period, the poverty rate for adults under 65 years decreased from 18.3% to 14.9%. For those older than 65, the poverty rate increased from 11.3% to 13%.
In 2024, 19.3% of children in Kentucky were living under the poverty line.
Poverty rate by age group, 2014–2024
How does poverty differ by race in Kentucky?
Among racial or ethnic groups in Kentucky during 2024, five had a higher poverty rate than the state’s overall rate: American Indian and Alaska Native, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino origin (of any race), some other race, and two or more races.
Three had a lower than average poverty rate: Asian; Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander; and White alone, not Hispanic or Latino.
Over the previous ten years, the poverty rate for the some other race population shifted the most, decreasing from 33.7% in 2014 to 22.2% in 2024.
In Kentucky, the poverty rate for the some other race population decreased from 33.7% in 2014 to 22.2% in 2024.
Poverty rate by race or ethnicity, 2014–2024
What counties in Kentucky have the highest and lowest poverty rates?
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Kentucky counties ranged from 4% in Oldham County to 38.1% in Wolfe County. The poverty rate in the state’s largest county — Jefferson County — was 14.5%.
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Kentucky counties ranged from 4.0% to 38.1%.
Poverty rate
Poverty rate, by county (2023)
| 1. | Wolfe County | 38.1% |
| 2. | Knox County | 36.7% |
| 3. | McCreary County | 35.1% |
| 4. | Cumberland County | 33.9% |
| 5. | Magoffin County | 33.4% |
| 6. | Clay County | 31.8% |
| 7. | Martin County | 29.2% |
| 8. | Lee County | 28.9% |
| 9. | Breathitt County | 28.2% |
| 10. | Menifee County | 28.2% |
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
