You’re probably never going to make enough money to live in the richest counties in Kentucky.
The median household income in Oldham County, the richest county in Kentucky is $122,497, significantly higher than the US median of $74,580, which means based purely on math most people never make enough to live there.
And that’s okay because it’s still fun to look at the people living in the lap of luxury.
So we used Saturday Night Science and the most recent Census to rank home prices and incomes for all 120 counties in the Bluegrass State. Let’s star gaze together.
What is the richest county in Kentucky? The richest county in Kentucky is Oldham County. In contrast, the poorest county in the state is Bell County, according to the Census data.
$122,497 median income · $441,311 median home price
$102,618 median income · $369,356 median home price
$99,414 median income · $342,671 median home price
$83,788 median income · $343,458 median home price
$85,158 median income · $338,690 median home price
$82,604 median income · $323,519 median home price
$80,558 median income · $295,711 median home price
$74,576 median income · $320,971 median home price
$77,567 median income · $291,569 median home price
$69,479 median income · $328,843 median home price
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Kentucky’s statewide median.
Kentucky statewide median: $63,726
Kentucky statewide median: $231,894
On the map
Where Kentucky’s richest counties are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which Kentucky county is the richest?
To determine the richest county in Kentucky, we have to look at a handful of metrics that correlate with how rich people are. To do that, we made assumptions about what makes a county rich. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.
With that in mind, we went to the American Community Survey data and Zillow for the most recent reporting period for data on the following:
- Average Home Price
- Median Income
We then ranked each county in Kentucky for each of the criteria from one to 120, with one being the richest.
Taking the average rank across the two criteria, we created a Rich Score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Richest County In Kentucky.”
The result is some of the places with the most expensive real estate and highest earners in the Bluegrass State.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our first time ranking the richest counties to live in Kentucky.
The full plate
Detailed List Of The Richest Counties In Kentucky
Click any column to sort. Search by county name.
| Rank | County | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oldham County | 69,257 | $122,497 | $441,311 |
| 2 | Spencer County | 20,193 | $102,618 | $369,356 |
| 3 | Boone County | 139,841 | $99,414 | $342,671 |
| 4 | Woodford County | 27,279 | $83,788 | $343,458 |
| 5 | Scott County | 59,536 | $85,158 | $338,690 |
| 6 | Shelby County | 49,096 | $82,604 | $323,519 |
| 7 | Bullitt County | 84,027 | $80,558 | $295,711 |
| 8 | Jessamine County | 54,588 | $74,576 | $320,971 |
| 9 | Campbell County | 93,426 | $77,567 | $291,569 |
| 9 | Fayette County | 323,725 | $69,479 | $328,843 |
| 11 | Kenton County | 171,288 | $80,548 | $282,910 |
| 12 | Meade County | 30,158 | $74,355 | $282,335 |
| 13 | Grant County | 25,418 | $69,178 | $283,036 |
| 15 | Nelson County | 47,606 | $69,562 | $266,251 |
| 15 | Jefferson County | 783,022 | $69,866 | $264,190 |
| 15 | Anderson County | 24,353 | $74,488 | $256,240 |
| 17 | Warren County | 140,918 | $65,794 | $294,047 |
| 18 | Hardin County | 111,942 | $67,647 | $245,407 |
| 19 | Garrard County | 17,568 | $63,087 | $291,731 |
| 20 | Madison County | 95,769 | $63,351 | $281,530 |
| 21 | Harrison County | 19,140 | $66,442 | $235,480 |
| 22 | Clark County | 37,192 | $64,348 | $259,293 |
| 23 | Larue County | 15,107 | $67,067 | $221,880 |
| 23 | Trimble County | 8,550 | $66,027 | $237,024 |
| 25 | Daviess County | 103,648 | $68,214 | $215,146 |
| 26 | Franklin County | 51,842 | $65,298 | $239,680 |
| 27 | Henry County | 15,856 | $63,347 | $250,392 |
| 28 | Pendleton County | 14,723 | $64,669 | $239,967 |
| 29 | Mercer County | 23,028 | $64,824 | $238,831 |
| 30 | Washington County | 12,140 | $61,616 | $250,389 |
| 31 | Bourbon County | 20,240 | $61,354 | $248,557 |
| 32 | Bracken County | 8,444 | $66,319 | $202,626 |
| 33 | Boyle County | 30,941 | $61,159 | $241,155 |
| 34 | Hancock County | 9,034 | $65,464 | $203,527 |
| 34 | Marshall County | 31,743 | $65,831 | $200,096 |
| 36 | Simpson County | 19,972 | $59,858 | $253,149 |
| 37 | Gallatin County | 8,769 | $63,346 | $211,484 |
| 38 | Allen County | 21,293 | $61,403 | $209,422 |
| 39 | Todd County | 12,469 | $61,103 | $221,369 |
| 40 | McCracken County | 67,564 | $64,373 | $193,182 |
| 41 | Marion County | 19,749 | $59,627 | $235,197 |
| 42 | Lyon County | 8,900 | $65,066 | $177,159 |
| 42 | Taylor County | 26,397 | $60,456 | $207,412 |
| 44 | Montgomery County | 28,395 | $56,396 | $226,507 |
| 45 | Logan County | 27,986 | $60,382 | $194,783 |
| 46 | McLean County | 9,114 | $65,596 | $153,568 |
| 48 | Owen County | 11,330 | $61,134 | $174,606 |
| 48 | Henderson County | 44,280 | $58,851 | $200,774 |
| 48 | Nicholas County | 7,708 | $59,531 | $199,884 |
| 50 | Christian County | 72,069 | $55,494 | $205,858 |
| 51 | Carroll County | 10,954 | $56,466 | $190,251 |
| 52 | Laurel County | 62,983 | $57,771 | $180,308 |
| 53 | Edmonson County | 12,355 | $54,937 | $191,973 |
| 53 | Butler County | 12,393 | $56,092 | $187,635 |
| 55 | Ballard County | 7,654 | $66,164 | $130,038 |
| 55 | Robertson County | 2,283 | $51,830 | $204,774 |
| 57 | Barren County | 44,938 | $50,628 | $212,440 |
| 58 | Bath County | 12,851 | $56,541 | $173,428 |
| 59 | Greenup County | 35,501 | $60,751 | $151,274 |
| 59 | Rowan County | 24,578 | $54,321 | $179,763 |
| 61 | Lincoln County | 24,504 | $52,440 | $180,736 |
| 61 | Hart County | 19,603 | $52,285 | $185,516 |
| 63 | Carlisle County | 4,762 | $62,439 | $136,908 |
| 64 | Breckinridge County | 20,881 | $55,843 | $166,095 |
| 64 | Adair County | 19,089 | $53,553 | $170,019 |
| 66 | Pulaski County | 65,897 | $51,898 | $172,253 |
| 67 | Caldwell County | 12,618 | $59,583 | $148,729 |
| 69 | Boyd County | 47,911 | $61,118 | $130,494 |
| 69 | Green County | 11,369 | $46,798 | $188,888 |
| 69 | Calloway County | 38,224 | $52,706 | $165,374 |
| 71 | Mason County | 16,956 | $52,178 | $166,856 |
| 71 | Metcalfe County | 10,425 | $51,473 | $170,421 |
| 74 | Ohio County | 23,735 | $57,798 | $148,738 |
| 74 | Fleming County | 15,323 | $49,307 | $178,561 |
| 74 | Webster County | 12,842 | $59,628 | $144,024 |
| 76 | Hopkins County | 45,119 | $56,815 | $149,499 |
| 76 | Trigg County | 14,315 | $59,857 | $143,558 |
| 78 | Livingston County | 8,903 | $58,984 | $144,381 |
| 78 | Union County | 13,260 | $60,327 | $133,741 |
| 80 | Graves County | 36,630 | $50,772 | $167,100 |
| 80 | Hickman County | 4,439 | $60,867 | $122,762 |
| 82 | Carter County | 26,341 | $51,235 | $159,697 |
| 83 | Grayson County | 26,707 | $50,757 | $163,925 |
| 84 | Wolfe County | 6,443 | $30,417 | $221,389 |
| 85 | Wayne County | 19,602 | $45,739 | $167,851 |
| 86 | Elliott County | 7,307 | $45,776 | $157,150 |
| 87 | Lawrence County | 16,077 | $46,772 | $152,920 |
| 87 | Monroe County | 11,269 | $51,280 | $144,851 |
| 89 | Casey County | 15,914 | $45,510 | $153,838 |
| 89 | Clinton County | 9,202 | $44,844 | $157,826 |
| 91 | Rockcastle County | 16,163 | $48,862 | $147,046 |
| 92 | Muhlenberg County | 30,591 | $51,927 | $127,980 |
| 93 | Russell County | 18,221 | $44,738 | $150,972 |
| 94 | Morgan County | 14,053 | $47,913 | $136,292 |
| 94 | Whitley County | 36,920 | $44,615 | $150,377 |
| 96 | Powell County | 13,038 | $40,309 | $152,341 |
| 97 | Johnson County | 22,334 | $44,904 | $141,663 |
| 98 | Estill County | 14,035 | $46,051 | $128,200 |
| 99 | Crittenden County | 8,979 | $46,656 | $126,163 |
| 100 | Knox County | 29,865 | $32,527 | $154,303 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS + Zillow via Saturday Night Science. All 120 Kentucky counties.
Summary
Summary: The Richest Counties In Kentucky For 2026
Living in Kentucky can vary from one part of the state to the next, with pretty extreme variance in home prices and incomes across counties.
The richest counties in Kentucky are Oldham County, Spencer County, Boone County, Woodford County, Scott County, Shelby County, Bullitt County, Jessamine County, Campbell County, and Fayette County.
Now you know the parts of the state where Goodwill will have the best goodies, and that’s what you came here to learn at the end of the day.
You are welcome.
