Data / Rankings / Job creation rate / Counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky by job creation rate

Jackson County had the highest job creation rate of 120 counties in 2018, at 22.804%. Hancock County had the lowest, at 3.65%. The median was 10.275% and the figure for Kentucky was 11.873%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest22.804Jackson County
Lowest3.65Hancock County
Median10.275120 counties
Kentucky11.873History

Map of counties, 2018

Adair County: 10.111 %Allen County: 6.487 %Anderson County: 9.067 %Ballard County: 14.442 %Barren County: 7.908 %Bath County: 12.701 %Bell County: 11.901 %Boone County: 12.802 %Bourbon County: 9.658 %Boyd County: 9.756 %Boyle County: 11.802 %Bracken County: 4.93 %Breathitt County: 6.214 %Breckinridge County: 12.647 %Bullitt County: 12.846 %Butler County: 22.776 %Caldwell County: 9.028 %Calloway County: 7.795 %Campbell County: 14.237 %Carlisle County: 11.587 %Carroll County: 4.983 %Carter County: 7.5 %Casey County: 8.07 %Christian County: 9.563 %Clark County: 7.517 %Clay County: 7.487 %Clinton County: 7.316 %Crittenden County: 9.338 %Cumberland County: 9.754 %Daviess County: 9.301 %Edmonson County: 9.815 %Elliott County: 10.242 %Estill County: 12.796 %Fayette County: 11.92 %Fleming County: 10.487 %Floyd County: 9.317 %Franklin County: 9.81 %Fulton County: 10.38 %Gallatin County: 7.503 %Garrard County: 17.167 %Grant County: 16.48 %Graves County: 14.232 %Grayson County: 9.075 %Green County: 10.688 %Greenup County: 16.36 %Hancock County: 3.65 %Hardin County: 10.732 %Harlan County: 13.984 %Harrison County: 7.252 %Hart County: 4.782 %Henderson County: 10.514 %Henry County: 13.02 %Hickman County: 8.778 %Hopkins County: 11.263 %Jackson County: 22.804 %Jefferson County: 13.369 %Jessamine County: 9.345 %Johnson County: 9.615 %Kenton County: 12.129 %Knott County: 13.504 %Knox County: 15.052 %Larue County: 13.131 %Laurel County: 8.683 %Lawrence County: 8.642 %Lee County: 18.78 %Leslie County: 8.857 %Letcher County: 11.189 %Lewis County: 10.292 %Lincoln County: 8.194 %Livingston County: 7.472 %Logan County: 9.894 %Lyon County: 12.318 %McCracken County: 11.996 %McCreary County: 8.776 %McLean County: 8.293 %Madison County: 13.215 %Magoffin County: 12.862 %Marion County: 11.182 %Marshall County: 11.885 %Martin County: 9.42 %Mason County: 9.981 %Meade County: 9.782 %Menifee County: 13.843 %Mercer County: 9.108 %Metcalfe County: 8.3 %Monroe County: 10.597 %Montgomery County: 5.847 %Morgan County: 11.05 %Muhlenberg County: 15.411 %Nelson County: 9.034 %Nicholas County: 17.46 %Ohio County: 6.947 %Oldham County: 10.258 %Owen County: 11.876 %Owsley County: 9.832 %Pendleton County: 9.839 %Perry County: 8.524 %Pike County: 9.705 %Powell County: 12.123 %Pulaski County: 11.899 %Robertson County: 11.798 %Rockcastle County: 7.509 %Rowan County: 8.143 %Russell County: 9.594 %Scott County: 9.372 %Shelby County: 11.845 %Simpson County: 12.572 %Spencer County: 11.73 %Taylor County: 13.167 %Todd County: 14.639 %Trigg County: 14.403 %Trimble County: 17.79 %Union County: 7.48 %Warren County: 12.669 %Washington County: 8.19 %Wayne County: 11.866 %Webster County: 13.063 %Whitley County: 9.824 %Wolfe County: 14.826 %Woodford County: 12.086 %
  • Under 8.1
  • 8.1 to 9.4
  • 9.4 to 10
  • 10 to 12
  • 12 to 13
  • 13 and over
%, 2018. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2018

Jackson County: 22.804 %Jackson County22.804Butler County: 22.776 %Butler County22.776Lee County: 18.78 %Lee County18.78Trimble County: 17.79 %Trimble County17.79Nicholas County: 17.46 %Nicholas County17.46Garrard County: 17.167 %Garrard County17.167Grant County: 16.48 %Grant County16.48Greenup County: 16.36 %Greenup County16.36Muhlenberg County: 15.411 %Muhlenberg County15.411Knox County: 15.052 %Knox County15.052Wolfe County: 14.826 %Wolfe County14.826Todd County: 14.639 %Todd County14.639Ballard County: 14.442 %Ballard County14.442Trigg County: 14.403 %Trigg County14.403Campbell County: 14.237 %Campbell County14.237Graves County: 14.232 %Graves County14.232Harlan County: 13.984 %Harlan County13.984Menifee County: 13.843 %Menifee County13.843Knott County: 13.504 %Knott County13.504Jefferson County: 13.369 %Jefferson County13.369Madison County: 13.215 %Madison County13.215Taylor County: 13.167 %Taylor County13.167Larue County: 13.131 %Larue County13.131Webster County: 13.063 %Webster County13.063Henry County: 13.02 %Henry County13.02Magoffin County: 12.862 %Magoffin County12.862Bullitt County: 12.846 %Bullitt County12.846Boone County: 12.802 %Boone County12.802Estill County: 12.796 %Estill County12.796Bath County: 12.701 %Bath County12.701Warren County: 12.669 %Warren County12.669Breckinridge County: 12.647 %Breckinridge County12.647Simpson County: 12.572 %Simpson County12.572Lyon County: 12.318 %Lyon County12.318Kenton County: 12.129 %Kenton County12.129Powell County: 12.123 %Powell County12.123Woodford County: 12.086 %Woodford County12.086McCracken County: 11.996 %McCracken County11.996Fayette County: 11.92 %Fayette County11.92Bell County: 11.901 %Bell County11.901Jackson County: 22.804 %Jackson County22.804Butler County: 22.776 %Butler County22.776Lee County: 18.78 %Lee County18.78Trimble County: 17.79 %Trimble County17.79Nicholas County: 17.46 %Nicholas County17.46Garrard County: 17.167 %Garrard County17.167Grant County: 16.48 %Grant County16.48Greenup County: 16.36 %Greenup County16.36Muhlenberg County: 15.411 %Muhlenberg County15.411Knox County: 15.052 %Knox County15.052Wolfe County: 14.826 %Wolfe County14.826Todd County: 14.639 %Todd County14.639Ballard County: 14.442 %Ballard County14.442Trigg County: 14.403 %Trigg County14.403Campbell County: 14.237 %Campbell County14.237Graves County: 14.232 %Graves County14.232Harlan County: 13.984 %Harlan County13.984Menifee County: 13.843 %Menifee County13.843Knott County: 13.504 %Knott County13.504Jefferson County: 13.369 %Jefferson County13.369Madison County: 13.215 %Madison County13.215Taylor County: 13.167 %Taylor County13.167Larue County: 13.131 %Larue County13.131Webster County: 13.063 %Webster County13.063Henry County: 13.02 %Henry County13.02Magoffin County: 12.862 %Magoffin County12.862Bullitt County: 12.846 %Bullitt County12.846Boone County: 12.802 %Boone County12.802Estill County: 12.796 %Estill County12.796Bath County: 12.701 %Bath County12.701Warren County: 12.669 %Warren County12.669Breckinridge County: 12.647 %Breckinridge County12.647Simpson County: 12.572 %Simpson County12.572Lyon County: 12.318 %Lyon County12.318Kenton County: 12.129 %Kenton County12.129Powell County: 12.123 %Powell County12.123Woodford County: 12.086 %Woodford County12.086McCracken County: 11.996 %McCracken County11.996Fayette County: 11.92 %Fayette County11.92Bell County: 11.901 %Bell County11.901
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2018 (%)Change on 2017
1Jackson County22.804+12.86 pts
2Butler County22.776+9.96 pts
3Lee County18.78+8.26 pts
4Trimble County17.79+3.66 pts
5Nicholas County17.46+6.26 pts
6Garrard County17.167+0.89 pts
7Grant County16.48+5.2 pts
8Greenup County16.36+4.59 pts
9Muhlenberg County15.411+2.86 pts
10Knox County15.052+4.26 pts
11Wolfe County14.826+5.7 pts
12Todd County14.639+7.79 pts
13Ballard County14.442+6.23 pts
14Trigg County14.403+5.08 pts
15Campbell County14.237+5.46 pts
16Graves County14.232-2.91 pts
17Harlan County13.984+3.71 pts
18Menifee County13.843-15.11 pts
19Knott County13.504-5.98 pts
20Jefferson County13.369-0.44 pts
21Madison County13.215+0.97 pts
22Taylor County13.167+1.79 pts
23Larue County13.131+0.27 pts
24Webster County13.063+1.26 pts
25Henry County13.02+1.87 pts
26Magoffin County12.862+1.02 pts
27Bullitt County12.846-1.47 pts
28Boone County12.802-1.8 pts
29Estill County12.796-1.6 pts
30Bath County12.701-2.48 pts
31Warren County12.669-1.34 pts
32Breckinridge County12.647+1.32 pts
33Simpson County12.572-5.8 pts
34Lyon County12.318+0.05 pts
35Kenton County12.129+1.34 pts
36Powell County12.123+1.34 pts
37Woodford County12.086-4.93 pts
38McCracken County11.996-1 pts
39Fayette County11.92-2.26 pts
40Bell County11.901-4.21 pts
41Pulaski County11.899-0.17 pts
42Marshall County11.885-5.81 pts
43Owen County11.876+5.37 pts
44Wayne County11.866-1.92 pts
45Shelby County11.845+1.49 pts
46Boyle County11.802+2.07 pts
47Robertson County11.798-33.93 pts
48Spencer County11.73-5.35 pts
49Carlisle County11.587-4.05 pts
50Hopkins County11.263+1.36 pts
51Letcher County11.189-6.13 pts
52Marion County11.182-0.76 pts
53Morgan County11.05-4.97 pts
54Hardin County10.732-2.18 pts
55Green County10.688-8.36 pts
56Monroe County10.597-0.45 pts
57Henderson County10.514+3.67 pts
58Fleming County10.487-6.94 pts
59Fulton County10.38+2.37 pts
60Lewis County10.292-6.83 pts
61Oldham County10.258-1.58 pts
62Elliott County10.242-7.91 pts
63Adair County10.111-4.16 pts
64Mason County9.981-0.58 pts
65Logan County9.894-0.23 pts
66Pendleton County9.839-3.47 pts
67Owsley County9.832-4.97 pts
68Whitley County9.824+0.52 pts
69Edmonson County9.815-9.23 pts
70Franklin County9.81-0.19 pts
71Meade County9.782-5.89 pts
72Boyd County9.756-3.12 pts
73Cumberland County9.754+1.09 pts
74Pike County9.705-5.76 pts
75Bourbon County9.658-5.43 pts
76Johnson County9.615-0.67 pts
77Russell County9.594-5.33 pts
78Christian County9.563-3.74 pts
79Martin County9.42-11.33 pts
80Scott County9.372-1.95 pts
81Jessamine County9.345-6.33 pts
82Crittenden County9.338-4.56 pts
83Floyd County9.317-0.96 pts
84Daviess County9.301-3.1 pts
85Mercer County9.108+4.09 pts
86Grayson County9.075+0.22 pts
87Anderson County9.067-4.51 pts
88Nelson County9.034-2.53 pts
89Caldwell County9.028-3.15 pts
90Leslie County8.857+0.66 pts
91Hickman County8.778-1.69 pts
92McCreary County8.776-6.13 pts
93Laurel County8.683-6.9 pts
94Lawrence County8.642-0.46 pts
95Perry County8.524-2.38 pts
96Metcalfe County8.3-3.11 pts
97McLean County8.293-0.9 pts
98Lincoln County8.194-5.67 pts
99Washington County8.19-2.54 pts
100Rowan County8.143-2.2 pts
101Casey County8.07-2.48 pts
102Barren County7.908-4.28 pts
103Calloway County7.795-1.29 pts
104Clark County7.517-7.53 pts
105Rockcastle County7.509-5.01 pts
106Gallatin County7.503-0.43 pts
107Carter County7.5-5.71 pts
108Clay County7.487-2.17 pts
109Union County7.48-0.07 pts
110Livingston County7.472-9.08 pts
111Clinton County7.316-0.42 pts
112Harrison County7.252-6.65 pts
113Ohio County6.947+1.02 pts
114Allen County6.487-0.54 pts
115Breathitt County6.214-5.79 pts
116Montgomery County5.847-2.81 pts
117Carroll County4.983-2.03 pts
118Bracken County4.93-5.95 pts
119Hart County4.782-3.82 pts
120Hancock County3.65-2.59 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs added at opening and expanding establishments during the year, as a percentage of average employment in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

A gross flow: jobs lost elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is this rate minus job_destruction_rate. Not the same as payroll job growth from the monthly employment surveys. 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. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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/job-creation-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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/job-creation-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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/job-creation-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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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/job-creation-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by job creation 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/job-creation-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-creation-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job creation 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 job creation rate?

Jackson County, with 22.804% in 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job creation rate?

Hancock County, with 3.65% 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: job creation rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Job creation rate: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings