Did you know that the bigger the hat you wear to the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, the more money people think you have?
All joking aside, HomeSnacks is here to tell you where the richest places are located in Kentucky for 2022 and we’ve listed them below.
If you ask any one of Kentucky’s 4.5 million residents they will say that their corner of the Bluegrass State is pretty cool; but if you ask the one percent, they will say that their Kentucky city is the best. Probably why many of the states richest places are also the Kentucky’s best. And like the rest of the country, the wealthy in Kentucky spare no expense, so that’s why we looked at factors like, but not limited to, median income data, education levels, and fancy amenities for 78 Kentucky places with at least 5,000 residents to narrow down Kentucky’s most well-to-do places.
And, folks, if you guessed that Bowling Green and Owensboro made the list, guess again. Actually, many of Kentucky’s most affluent places are centered around the state’s eighth largest city, Florence. Are you at all surprised? We aren’t. Florence is super safe and this key attribute is definitely trickling down to Kentucky’s richest places.
Want to know more? We suggest you grab a mint julep, a sunny spot at Churchill Downs, and read on to see where Kentucky “Richie Rich” live.
Here are the 10 richest places in Kentucky for 2022:
If you’re wondering how to get your hands on one of Kentucky’s richest places, you can start by researching a list of Kentucky’s highest paying jobs because you’re going to need to make at least $70,952/year to keep up with the Joneses in these places.
So, what is the richest place in Kentucky for 2022? According to the latest data,that honor goes to Union.
To see what other wealthy Kentucky cities made the list, hit that down arrow. And if you have a second, take a look at Kentucky’s poorest places, it will definitely put this list in perspective.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about Kentucky:
The 10 Richest Cities In Kentucky For 2022
1. Union
/10
Population: 5,988
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $123,630
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 0.8%
More on Union: Real Estate | Photos
2. Fort Wright
/10
Population: 5,766
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $86,208
Unemployment Rate: 0.9%
Poverty Rate: 3.6%
More on Fort Wright: Real Estate | Photos
3. Edgewood
/10
Population: 8,779
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $105,714
Unemployment Rate: 2.1%
Poverty Rate: 2.6%
More on Edgewood: Real Estate | Photos
4. Fort Mitchell
/10
Population: 8,278
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 2)
Median Income: $72,376
Unemployment Rate: 1.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.2%
More on Fort Mitchell: Real Estate | Photos
5. Villa Hills
/10
Population: 7,475
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Median Income: $91,166
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 4.3%
More on Villa Hills: Real Estate
6. Taylor Mill
/10
Population: 6,805
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 5)
Median Income: $70,952
Unemployment Rate: 1.6%
Poverty Rate: 8.5%
More on Taylor Mill: Real Estate
7. Fort Thomas
/10
Population: 16,335
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Median Income: $80,549
Unemployment Rate: 3.7%
Poverty Rate: 5.4%
More on Fort Thomas: Real Estate | Photos
8. Cold Spring
/10
Population: 6,481
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 2)
Median Income: $72,756
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 5.5%
More on Cold Spring: Real Estate | Photos
9. Independence
/10
Population: 28,119
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 1)
Median Income: $79,929
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 8.5%
More on Independence: Real Estate | Photos
10. Alexandria
/10
Population: 9,600
Rank Last Year: 16 (Up 6)
Median Income: $83,923
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
Poverty Rate: 6.0%
More on Alexandria: Real Estate | Photos
Methodology: How We Determined The Richest Places In Kentucky For 2022
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the richest places is to simply identify personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don’t believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “richest places”. So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2016-2020 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
- Unemployment Rate
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place really is. The unemployment rate tries to capture the prospects for more people to become rich. If more people are employed, the richer the future looks.
After we collected the data for all 78 places with more than 5,000 people in Kentucky, we ranked each place from 1 to 78 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Rich Score” with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Union, crowned the “Richest City In Kentucky For 2022”. You can download the data here.
You can learn more about the top ten below or skip to the end to see the rankings for all 78 places.
Summary: The Wealthiest Places In Kentucky For 2022
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in Kentucky, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Kentucky.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the poorest cities in Kentucky, according to data:
Poorest: Somerset
2nd Poorest: Lebanon
3rd Poorest: Mayfield
For more Kentucky reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Kentucky
- Worst Places To Live In Kentucky
- Cheapest Places To Live In Kentucky
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Kentucky
| Rank | City | RichScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Union | 2.67 |
| 2 | Fort Wright | 3.67 |
| 3 | Edgewood | 4.0 |
| 4 | Fort Mitchell | 7.67 |
| 5 | Villa Hills | 9.0 |
| 6 | Taylor Mill | 11.67 |
| 7 | Fort Thomas | 12.33 |
| 8 | Cold Spring | 12.33 |
| 9 | Independence | 12.67 |
| 10 | Alexandria | 15.0 |
| 11 | Wilmore | 15.67 |
| 12 | La Grange | 17.67 |
| 13 | Bellevue | 18.33 |
| 14 | St. Matthews | 18.33 |
| 15 | Jeffersontown | 18.67 |
| 16 | Douglass Hills | 19.0 |
| 17 | Georgetown | 19.33 |
| 18 | Lyndon | 21.33 |
| 19 | Florence | 21.67 |
| 20 | Mount Washington | 22.67 |
| 21 | Shelbyville | 23.33 |
| 22 | Crestwood | 23.67 |
| 23 | Erlanger | 24.33 |
| 24 | Hillview | 25.33 |
| 25 | Shepherdsville | 25.67 |
| 26 | Middletown | 26.67 |
| 27 | Vine Grove | 27.33 |
| 28 | Elsmere | 29.33 |
| 29 | Flatwoods | 30.33 |
| 30 | Bardstown | 30.67 |
| 31 | Central City | 31.33 |
| 32 | Princeton | 32.0 |
| 33 | Lexington | 34.0 |
| 34 | Versailles | 34.0 |
| 35 | Louisville | 36.33 |
| 36 | Elizabethtown | 36.67 |
| 37 | Frankfort | 38.67 |
| 38 | Highland Heights | 39.33 |
| 39 | Owensboro | 40.67 |
| 40 | Nicholasville | 41.33 |
| 41 | Paducah | 42.33 |
| 42 | Harrodsburg | 42.33 |
| 43 | London | 45.0 |
| 44 | Lawrenceburg | 45.67 |
| 45 | Paris | 46.0 |
| 46 | Henderson | 46.0 |
| 47 | Franklin | 46.33 |
| 48 | Dayton | 46.33 |
| 49 | Berea | 46.33 |
| 50 | Leitchfield | 48.0 |
| 51 | Covington | 50.0 |
| 52 | Winchester | 50.33 |
| 53 | Cynthiana | 51.33 |
| 54 | Shively | 53.0 |
| 55 | Radcliff | 53.33 |
| 56 | Danville | 53.67 |
| 57 | Bowling Green | 54.67 |
| 58 | Ashland | 55.33 |
| 59 | Maysville | 56.0 |
| 60 | Madisonville | 57.0 |
| 61 | Corbin | 58.0 |
| 62 | Pikeville | 58.67 |
| 63 | Campbellsville | 58.67 |
| 64 | Hopkinsville | 59.0 |
| 65 | Murray | 59.0 |
| 66 | Oak Grove | 59.33 |
| 67 | Newport | 60.0 |
| 68 | Mount Sterling | 61.33 |
| 69 | Morehead | 64.67 |
| 70 | Russellville | 65.0 |
| 71 | Richmond | 66.0 |
| 72 | Glasgow | 68.0 |
| 73 | Middlesborough | 70.33 |
| 74 | Williamsburg | 72.0 |
| 75 | Monticello | 72.67 |
| 76 | Mayfield | 74.33 |
| 77 | Lebanon | 74.33 |
| 78 | Somerset | 76.0 |