Data / Rankings / Establishment exit rate / Counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate

Edmonson County had the highest establishment exit rate of 117 counties in 2018, at 22.439%. Knott County had the lowest, at 3.289%. The median was 7.759% and the figure for Kentucky was 8.029%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest22.439Edmonson County
Lowest3.289Knott County
Median7.759117 counties
Kentucky8.029History

Map of counties, 2018

Adair County: 6.859 %Allen County: 13.212 %Anderson County: 7.21 %Ballard County: 5 %Barren County: 12.204 %Bath County: 6.926 %Bell County: 8.535 %Boone County: 7.366 %Bourbon County: 9.917 %Boyd County: 5.875 %Boyle County: 6.517 %Bracken County: 9.756 %Breathitt County: 12.069 %Breckinridge County: 8.284 %Bullitt County: 6.994 %Butler County: 10.089 %Caldwell County: 12.075 %Calloway County: 6.756 %Campbell County: 7.528 %Carlisle County: 12.27 %Carroll County: 8.531 %Carter County: 6.943 %Casey County: 12.621 %Christian County: 8.768 %Clark County: 8.11 %Clay County: 7.798 %Clinton County: 7.429 %Crittenden County: 6.349 %Cumberland County: 7.805 %Daviess County: 7.13 %Edmonson County: 22.439 %Elliott County: 12.5 %Estill County: 3.67 %Fayette County: 8.332 %Fleming County: 6.993 %Floyd County: 8.977 %Franklin County: 6.165 %Fulton County: 6.87 %Gallatin County: 13.187 %Garrard County: 10.076 %Grant County: 11.747 %Graves County: 8.473 %Grayson County: 7.72 %Green County: 4.396 %Greenup County: 6.913 %Hancock County: 11.823 %Hardin County: 7.271 %Harlan County: 9.69 %Harrison County: 7.157 %Hart County: 14.919 %Henderson County: 7.281 %Henry County: 7.407 %Hickman County: 9.091 %Hopkins County: 8.087 %Jackson County: 9.195 %Jefferson County: 8.211 %Jessamine County: 7.112 %Johnson County: 8.116 %Kenton County: 6.802 %Knott County: 3.289 %Knox County: 5.573 %Larue County: 7.792 %Laurel County: 5.73 %Lawrence County: 9.254 %Lee County: 3.315 %Leslie County: 12.435 %Letcher County: 7.692 %Lewis County: 7.759 %Lincoln County: 8.273 %Livingston County: 6.691 %Logan County: 10.753 %Lyon County: 8.442 %McCracken County: 7.551 %McCreary County: 10.423 %McLean County: 6.116 %Madison County: 6.402 %Magoffin County: 8.824 %Marion County: 5.592 %Marshall County: 6.027 %Martin County: 10.078 %Mason County: 5.5 %Meade County: 7 %Menifee County: 6.186 %Mercer County: 9.585 %Metcalfe County: 10.329 %Monroe County: 8.854 %Montgomery County: 8.425 %Morgan County: 8.754 %Muhlenberg County: 7.576 %Nelson County: 6.508 %Nicholas County: 7.519 %Ohio County: 12.034 %Oldham County: 8.649 %Owen County: 4.444 %Pendleton County: 10.526 %Perry County: 6.692 %Pike County: 7.149 %Powell County: 7.358 %Pulaski County: 6.748 %Rockcastle County: 5.666 %Rowan County: 4.6 %Russell County: 6.309 %Scott County: 8.189 %Shelby County: 5.832 %Simpson County: 12.661 %Spencer County: 13.613 %Taylor County: 8.413 %Todd County: 4.8 %Trigg County: 7.075 %Trimble County: 13.74 %Union County: 8.155 %Warren County: 13.893 %Washington County: 5.556 %Wayne County: 5.837 %Webster County: 11.253 %Whitley County: 7.162 %Woodford County: 9.27 %
  • Under 6.2
  • 6.2 to 7.1
  • 7.1 to 7.8
  • 7.8 to 8.7
  • 8.7 to 11
  • 11 and over
  • No data
%, 2018. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2018

Edmonson County: 22.439 %Edmonson County22.439Hart County: 14.919 %Hart County14.919Warren County: 13.893 %Warren County13.893Trimble County: 13.74 %Trimble County13.74Spencer County: 13.613 %Spencer County13.613Allen County: 13.212 %Allen County13.212Gallatin County: 13.187 %Gallatin County13.187Simpson County: 12.661 %Simpson County12.661Casey County: 12.621 %Casey County12.621Elliott County: 12.5 %Elliott County12.5Leslie County: 12.435 %Leslie County12.435Carlisle County: 12.27 %Carlisle County12.27Barren County: 12.204 %Barren County12.204Caldwell County: 12.075 %Caldwell County12.075Breathitt County: 12.069 %Breathitt County12.069Ohio County: 12.034 %Ohio County12.034Hancock County: 11.823 %Hancock County11.823Grant County: 11.747 %Grant County11.747Webster County: 11.253 %Webster County11.253Logan County: 10.753 %Logan County10.753Pendleton County: 10.526 %Pendleton County10.526McCreary County: 10.423 %McCreary County10.423Metcalfe County: 10.329 %Metcalfe County10.329Butler County: 10.089 %Butler County10.089Martin County: 10.078 %Martin County10.078Garrard County: 10.076 %Garrard County10.076Bourbon County: 9.917 %Bourbon County9.917Bracken County: 9.756 %Bracken County9.756Harlan County: 9.69 %Harlan County9.69Mercer County: 9.585 %Mercer County9.585Woodford County: 9.27 %Woodford County9.27Lawrence County: 9.254 %Lawrence County9.254Jackson County: 9.195 %Jackson County9.195Hickman County: 9.091 %Hickman County9.091Floyd County: 8.977 %Floyd County8.977Monroe County: 8.854 %Monroe County8.854Magoffin County: 8.824 %Magoffin County8.824Christian County: 8.768 %Christian County8.768Morgan County: 8.754 %Morgan County8.754Oldham County: 8.649 %Oldham County8.649Edmonson County: 22.439 %Edmonson County22.439Hart County: 14.919 %Hart County14.919Warren County: 13.893 %Warren County13.893Trimble County: 13.74 %Trimble County13.74Spencer County: 13.613 %Spencer County13.613Allen County: 13.212 %Allen County13.212Gallatin County: 13.187 %Gallatin County13.187Simpson County: 12.661 %Simpson County12.661Casey County: 12.621 %Casey County12.621Elliott County: 12.5 %Elliott County12.5Leslie County: 12.435 %Leslie County12.435Carlisle County: 12.27 %Carlisle County12.27Barren County: 12.204 %Barren County12.204Caldwell County: 12.075 %Caldwell County12.075Breathitt County: 12.069 %Breathitt County12.069Ohio County: 12.034 %Ohio County12.034Hancock County: 11.823 %Hancock County11.823Grant County: 11.747 %Grant County11.747Webster County: 11.253 %Webster County11.253Logan County: 10.753 %Logan County10.753Pendleton County: 10.526 %Pendleton County10.526McCreary County: 10.423 %McCreary County10.423Metcalfe County: 10.329 %Metcalfe County10.329Butler County: 10.089 %Butler County10.089Martin County: 10.078 %Martin County10.078Garrard County: 10.076 %Garrard County10.076Bourbon County: 9.917 %Bourbon County9.917Bracken County: 9.756 %Bracken County9.756Harlan County: 9.69 %Harlan County9.69Mercer County: 9.585 %Mercer County9.585Woodford County: 9.27 %Woodford County9.27Lawrence County: 9.254 %Lawrence County9.254Jackson County: 9.195 %Jackson County9.195Hickman County: 9.091 %Hickman County9.091Floyd County: 8.977 %Floyd County8.977Monroe County: 8.854 %Monroe County8.854Magoffin County: 8.824 %Magoffin County8.824Christian County: 8.768 %Christian County8.768Morgan County: 8.754 %Morgan County8.754Oldham County: 8.649 %Oldham County8.649
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2018 (%)Change on 2017
1Edmonson County22.439+14.18 pts
2Hart County14.919+5.25 pts
3Warren County13.893+6.6 pts
4Trimble County13.74+6.11 pts
5Spencer County13.613+3.96 pts
6Allen County13.212+4.48 pts
7Gallatin County13.187+2.66 pts
8Simpson County12.661+7.52 pts
9Casey County12.621+7.79 pts
10Elliott County12.5n/a
11Leslie County12.435+1.38 pts
12Carlisle County12.27+5.04 pts
13Barren County12.204+5.31 pts
14Caldwell County12.075+2.31 pts
15Breathitt County12.069+4.07 pts
16Ohio County12.034+4.2 pts
17Hancock County11.823+8.94 pts
18Grant County11.747+0.98 pts
19Webster County11.253+3.62 pts
20Logan County10.753+3.22 pts
21Pendleton County10.526+4.62 pts
22McCreary County10.423+3.99 pts
23Metcalfe County10.329-0.29 pts
24Butler County10.089+2.44 pts
25Martin County10.078-3.06 pts
26Garrard County10.076+3.13 pts
27Bourbon County9.917+0.51 pts
28Bracken County9.756+1.37 pts
29Harlan County9.69+0.53 pts
30Mercer County9.585+1.09 pts
31Woodford County9.27+2.7 pts
32Lawrence County9.254+4.35 pts
33Jackson County9.195+2.38 pts
34Hickman County9.091+0.07 pts
35Floyd County8.977+0.9 pts
36Monroe County8.854+4.2 pts
37Magoffin County8.824-0.97 pts
38Christian County8.768+0.28 pts
39Morgan County8.754-0.28 pts
40Oldham County8.649-1.95 pts
41Bell County8.535-0.87 pts
42Carroll County8.531+2.43 pts
43Graves County8.473+1.82 pts
44Lyon County8.442+0.05 pts
45Montgomery County8.425+0.62 pts
46Taylor County8.413+0.12 pts
47Fayette County8.332+0.02 pts
48Breckinridge County8.284-7.04 pts
49Lincoln County8.273+1.07 pts
50Jefferson County8.211-0.44 pts
51Scott County8.189-0.51 pts
52Union County8.155+1.79 pts
53Johnson County8.116-1.5 pts
54Clark County8.11+1.28 pts
55Hopkins County8.087-1.21 pts
56Cumberland County7.805+0.15 pts
57Clay County7.798-1.73 pts
58Larue County7.792-11.77 pts
59Lewis County7.759-3.81 pts
60Grayson County7.72-7.81 pts
61Letcher County7.692-2.82 pts
62Muhlenberg County7.576-1.76 pts
63McCracken County7.551-0.9 pts
64Campbell County7.528-0.4 pts
65Nicholas County7.519+1.55 pts
66Clinton County7.429+0.67 pts
67Henry County7.407-2.52 pts
68Boone County7.366+0.09 pts
69Powell County7.358-1.65 pts
70Henderson County7.281+0.14 pts
71Hardin County7.271-9.82 pts
72Anderson County7.21+1.91 pts
73Whitley County7.162-3.09 pts
74Harrison County7.157+0.58 pts
75Pike County7.149-2.46 pts
76Daviess County7.13-1.07 pts
77Jessamine County7.112+0.58 pts
78Trigg County7.075-2.88 pts
79Meade County7-17.81 pts
80Bullitt County6.994-0.8 pts
81Fleming County6.993-1.54 pts
82Carter County6.943+0.55 pts
83Bath County6.926-0.16 pts
84Greenup County6.913-4.31 pts
85Fulton County6.87+2.22 pts
86Adair County6.859-2.96 pts
87Kenton County6.802-1.5 pts
88Calloway County6.756-1.43 pts
89Pulaski County6.748+1.73 pts
90Perry County6.692-2.55 pts
91Livingston County6.691-1.28 pts
92Boyle County6.517+1.82 pts
93Nelson County6.508-6.57 pts
94Madison County6.402-2.14 pts
95Crittenden County6.349-0.82 pts
96Russell County6.309-0.84 pts
97Menifee County6.186n/a
98Franklin County6.165+0.44 pts
99McLean County6.116-1.16 pts
100Marshall County6.027-0.5 pts
101Boyd County5.875-4.08 pts
102Wayne County5.837+0.42 pts
103Shelby County5.832-2.1 pts
104Laurel County5.73-0.02 pts
105Rockcastle County5.666-7.41 pts
106Marion County5.592-12.59 pts
107Knox County5.573-0.31 pts
108Washington County5.556-11.87 pts
109Mason County5.5-2.98 pts
110Ballard County5-0.91 pts
111Todd County4.8+0.54 pts
112Rowan County4.6-2.65 pts
113Owen County4.444-6.08 pts
114Green County4.396-5.31 pts
115Estill County3.67-6.06 pts
116Lee County3.315-3.17 pts
117Knott County3.289-10.22 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Establishments that closed during the year (employees a year earlier and none in March of the year), as a percentage of the average number of establishments in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

Counts closed locations, including branches of firms that keep operating elsewhere, so it is not a firm failure rate. Not comparable with enterprise_death_rate, which counts enterprise deaths in Europe. The year is the twelve months to March: 2023 compares March 2022 with March 2023.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 3 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2018 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2025). Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_kentucky_by_2018,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by establishment exit rate, 2018
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/25
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/establishment-exit-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest establishment exit rate?

Edmonson County, with 22.439% in 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest establishment exit rate?

Knott County, with 3.289% in 2018.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: establishment exit rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 3 counties have no value for 2018 and are not ranked.

Establishment exit rate: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings