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List of Cities and Counties in Kentucky

Discover Kentucky population facts easily with our list of counties and cities. Find out how many people live in each area, from big cities to small towns, and see how Kentucky’s population is spread out across the state.

Kentucky Counties by Population

A county is an administrative subdivision of a US state or territory. As of 2022, Kentucky is divided into 120 counties. The average county population, based on the estimated 2021  was 37,578.

The most populous county in Kentucky is Jefferson County ( 0.78 million) and the least populated is Robertson County. The Largest county by Land Area in Kentucky is Pike County (788 sq. mi.) and the smallest in the area is Robertson County.

read about the Population of Kentucky

#CountyPopulation 2021Area (sq. mi.)
1Jefferson County777,874385
2Fayette County321,793284
3Kenton County169,495163
4Boone County137,412246
5Warren County137,212545
6Hardin County111,607628
7Daviess County103,063462
8Madison County94,666441
9Campbell County93,050152
10Bullitt County82,918299
11Christian County72,357721
12Oldham County68,685189
13McCracken County67,454251
14Pulaski County65,423662
15Laurel County62,561436
16Scott County58,252285
17Pike County57,391788
18Jessamine County53,626173
19Franklin County51,682210
20Shelby County48,461384
21Boyd County47,899160
22Nelson County47,098423
23Hopkins County45,138551
24Barren County44,544491
25Henderson County44,329440
26Calloway County37,560386
27Whitley County36,939440
28Clark County36,871254
29Graves County36,615556
30Greenup County35,649346
31Floyd County35,274394
32Marshall County31,748305
33Boyle County30,747182
34Muhlenberg County30,694475
35Meade County30,131308
36Knox County29,909388
37Montgomery County28,219199
38Perry County27,929342
39Logan County27,771556
40Woodford County27,075191
41Grayson County26,524504
42Carter County26,412411
43Taylor County26,235270
44Harlan County26,164467
45Grant County25,244260
46Rowan County24,861281
47Lincoln County24,243337
48Anderson County24,035203
49Bell County23,858361
50Ohio County23,688594
51Mercer County22,850251
52Johnson County22,556262
53Letcher County21,253339
54Allen County20,797346
55Breckinridge County20,651572
56Bourbon County20,229291
57Clay County20,206471
58Spencer County19,916186
59Marion County19,725347
60Simpson County19,718236
61Wayne County19,540459
62Hart County19,460416
63Harrison County18,950310
64Adair County18,932407
65Russell County18,156254
66Garrard County17,362231
67Mason County16,931241
68McCreary County16,892428
69Lawrence County16,290419
70Rockcastle County16,115318
71Casey County15,866446
72Henry County15,657289
73Fleming County15,224351
74LaRue County15,028263
75Pendleton County14,607280
76Trigg County14,192443
77Estill County14,092254
78Knott County14,053352
79Morgan County13,820381
80Breathitt County13,553495
81Union County13,544345
82Powell County13,133180
83Lewis County12,987484
84Jackson County12,984346
85Webster County12,813335
86Bath County12,778279
87Caldwell County12,624347
88Butler County12,294428
89Edmonson County12,291303
90Todd County12,285376
91Washington County12,072301
92Magoffin County11,497310
93Owen County11,294352
94Green County11,291289
95Monroe County11,233331
96Martin County11,140231
97Carroll County10,863130
98Metcalfe County10,349291
99Leslie County10,278404
100Clinton County9,265198
101McLean County9,100254
102Hancock County9,064189
103Livingston County8,959316
104Crittenden County8,947362
105Lyon County8,803216
106Gallatin County8,775105
107Trimble County8,530149
108Bracken County8,439203
109Nicholas County7,712197
110Ballard County7,695251
111Lee County7,451210
112Elliott County7,381234
113Fulton County6,512209
114Wolfe County6,507223
115Menifee County6,194204
116Cumberland County5,879306
117Carlisle County4,791192
118Hickman County4,424244
119Owsley County3,953198
120Robertson County2,257100

read about the race and ethnicity in Kentucky

Top Cities in Kentucky by population

As of 2022, Kentucky is divided into 120 counties and it has 419 cities. The most populated city in Kentucky by population is Louisville (633,045). It’s followed by Lexington (322,570) and Bowling Green (72,294).

Let’s have a look at the top 20 cities in Kentucky by population

#NameCountyPopulation 2020Area (sq. mi.)
1LouisvilleJefferson633,045342.2
2LexingtonFayette322,570285.6
3Bowling GreenWarren72,29438.1
4OwensboroDaviess60,18320.4
5CovingtonKenton40,96113.8 
6GeorgetownScott37,08616.0 
7RichmondMadison34,58523.1
8FlorenceBoone31,94610.4
9ElizabethtownHardin31,39425.8
10HopkinsvilleChristian31,18030.8
11NicholasvilleJessamine31,09313.1 
12IndependenceKenton28,67617.7 
13FrankfortFranklin28,60214.6 
14JeffersontownJefferson28,47410.0 
15HendersonHenderson27,98117.6 
16PaducahMcCracken27,13720.0
17RadcliffHardin23,04212.4 
18AshlandBoyd21,62510.8 
19ErlangerKenton19,6118.5
20MadisonvilleHopkins19,54218.7

Source: US Census 2020

Most Populous Counties in Kentucky

The most populous county in Kentucky is Jefferson County with 0.78 million residents. It is followed by Ramsey County (0.32 million) and Kenton County (0.17 million)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 most populous counties

#CountyPopulation 2021
1Jefferson County777,874
2Fayette County321,793
3Kenton County169,495
4Boone County137,412
5Warren County137,212
6Hardin County111,607
7Daviess County103,063
8Madison County94,666
9Campbell County93,050
10Bullitt County82,918
Least Populated Kentucky County

The least populous county is Robertson County with 2,357 residents, it’s followed by Owsley County and Hickman County.

Let’s have a look at 5 least populated counties in Kentucky

#CountyPopulation 2021
1Robertson County2,257
2Owsley County3,953
3Hickman County4,424
4Carlisle County4,791
5Cumberland County5,879

source: US Census 2021

read about religion in Kentucky

Largest Counties in Kentucky by area

The Largest county by Land Area in Kentucky is Pike County with an area of 788 sq. miles. Koochiching with an area of 721 sq. mi. comes next followed by Itasca County (662 sq. mi.)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 counties by Area

#CountyArea (sq. mi.)
1Pike County788
2Christian County721
3Pulaski County662
4Hardin County628
5Ohio County594
6Breckinridge County572
7Logan County556
8Graves County556
9Hopkins County551
10Warren County545
Smallest County in Kentucky by area

The smallest county by area in Kentucky is Robertson County with an area of 100 square miles.

#CountyArea (sq. mi.)
1Robertson County100
2Gallatin County105
3Carroll County130
4Trimble County149
5Campbell County152

source: US Census report 2021

Most Densely populated Counties in Kentucky

The most densely populated county in Kentucky is Jefferson County, with 2020 people per sq. mi. Next comes Fayette County with 1133 people per sq. mi followed by Kenton County (1040/ sq.mi)

Let’s have a look at the Top 10 densely populated counties

#CountyDensity (people/sq.mi.)
1Jefferson County2,020.45
2Fayette County1,133.07
3Kenton County1,039.85
4Campbell County612.17
5Boone County558.59
6Oldham County363.41
7Jessamine County309.98
8Boyd County299.37
9Bullitt County277.32
10McCracken County268.74
Least Densely Populated County in Kentucky

Hickman County with a population density of just 18.43 people per sq. miles is the least densely populated county in Kentucky

#CountyDensity (people/sq.mi.)
1Hickman County18.13
2Cumberland County19.21
3Owsley County19.96
4Robertson County22.57
5Crittenden County24.72

source: US Census 2021

Sources

Religion in United States
Race and Ethnicity in US
US State by Population
List of Counties in Kentucky 2024 | Top Cities in Kentucky by population

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