Data / Rankings / Job destruction rate / Counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate

Lee County had the highest job destruction rate of 120 counties in 2019, at 39.479%. Hancock County had the lowest, at 2.997%. The median was 9.608% and the figure for Kentucky was 9.701%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest39.479Lee County
Lowest2.997Hancock County
Median9.608120 counties
Kentucky9.701History

Map of counties, 2019

Adair County: 11.478 %Allen County: 3.827 %Anderson County: 7.576 %Ballard County: 18.394 %Barren County: 8.957 %Bath County: 7.315 %Bell County: 12.768 %Boone County: 8.964 %Bourbon County: 10.377 %Boyd County: 11.625 %Boyle County: 11.869 %Bracken County: 12.017 %Breathitt County: 8.328 %Breckinridge County: 10.596 %Bullitt County: 8.571 %Butler County: 11.804 %Caldwell County: 10.122 %Calloway County: 8.519 %Campbell County: 8.742 %Carlisle County: 15.137 %Carroll County: 3.54 %Carter County: 10.809 %Casey County: 9.648 %Christian County: 9.553 %Clark County: 13.192 %Clay County: 11.119 %Clinton County: 6.477 %Crittenden County: 13.094 %Cumberland County: 8.273 %Daviess County: 9.233 %Edmonson County: 11.081 %Elliott County: 34.768 %Estill County: 13.54 %Fayette County: 8.872 %Fleming County: 8.632 %Floyd County: 9.463 %Franklin County: 10.891 %Fulton County: 20.012 %Gallatin County: 5.131 %Garrard County: 14.989 %Grant County: 7.759 %Graves County: 7.729 %Grayson County: 7.246 %Green County: 11.144 %Greenup County: 14.627 %Hancock County: 2.997 %Hardin County: 11.143 %Harlan County: 9.832 %Harrison County: 6.726 %Hart County: 9.383 %Henderson County: 9.411 %Henry County: 9.918 %Hickman County: 14.198 %Hopkins County: 10.002 %Jackson County: 8.792 %Jefferson County: 9.909 %Jessamine County: 9.442 %Johnson County: 8.576 %Kenton County: 9.478 %Knott County: 10.947 %Knox County: 8.81 %Larue County: 7.842 %Laurel County: 13.08 %Lawrence County: 6.863 %Lee County: 39.479 %Leslie County: 9.545 %Letcher County: 14.532 %Lewis County: 12.659 %Lincoln County: 10.807 %Livingston County: 21.829 %Logan County: 5.806 %Lyon County: 8.188 %McCracken County: 8.433 %McCreary County: 13.738 %McLean County: 13.538 %Madison County: 10.251 %Magoffin County: 17.58 %Marion County: 9.44 %Marshall County: 11.357 %Martin County: 15.962 %Mason County: 12.622 %Meade County: 10.532 %Menifee County: 6.537 %Mercer County: 7.385 %Metcalfe County: 7.228 %Monroe County: 9.857 %Montgomery County: 10.372 %Morgan County: 24.427 %Muhlenberg County: 14.671 %Nelson County: 6.083 %Nicholas County: 14.815 %Ohio County: 11.955 %Oldham County: 7.765 %Owen County: 21.091 %Owsley County: 8.878 %Pendleton County: 7.511 %Perry County: 8.988 %Pike County: 9.568 %Powell County: 16.467 %Pulaski County: 11.082 %Robertson County: 16.997 %Rockcastle County: 9.871 %Rowan County: 8.967 %Russell County: 9.49 %Scott County: 7.015 %Shelby County: 9.189 %Simpson County: 7.727 %Spencer County: 10.284 %Taylor County: 6.871 %Todd County: 14.218 %Trigg County: 9.315 %Trimble County: 7.618 %Union County: 8.63 %Warren County: 8.873 %Washington County: 7.912 %Wayne County: 6.805 %Webster County: 11.185 %Whitley County: 9.526 %Wolfe County: 13.273 %Woodford County: 5.885 %
  • Under 7.6
  • 7.6 to 8.9
  • 8.9 to 9.6
  • 9.6 to 11
  • 11 to 14
  • 14 and over
%, 2019. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2019

Lee County: 39.479 %Lee County39.479Elliott County: 34.768 %Elliott County34.768Morgan County: 24.427 %Morgan County24.427Livingston County: 21.829 %Livingston County21.829Owen County: 21.091 %Owen County21.091Fulton County: 20.012 %Fulton County20.012Ballard County: 18.394 %Ballard County18.394Magoffin County: 17.58 %Magoffin County17.58Robertson County: 16.997 %Robertson County16.997Powell County: 16.467 %Powell County16.467Martin County: 15.962 %Martin County15.962Carlisle County: 15.137 %Carlisle County15.137Garrard County: 14.989 %Garrard County14.989Nicholas County: 14.815 %Nicholas County14.815Muhlenberg County: 14.671 %Muhlenberg County14.671Greenup County: 14.627 %Greenup County14.627Letcher County: 14.532 %Letcher County14.532Todd County: 14.218 %Todd County14.218Hickman County: 14.198 %Hickman County14.198McCreary County: 13.738 %McCreary County13.738Estill County: 13.54 %Estill County13.54McLean County: 13.538 %McLean County13.538Wolfe County: 13.273 %Wolfe County13.273Clark County: 13.192 %Clark County13.192Crittenden County: 13.094 %Crittenden County13.094Laurel County: 13.08 %Laurel County13.08Bell County: 12.768 %Bell County12.768Lewis County: 12.659 %Lewis County12.659Mason County: 12.622 %Mason County12.622Bracken County: 12.017 %Bracken County12.017Ohio County: 11.955 %Ohio County11.955Boyle County: 11.869 %Boyle County11.869Butler County: 11.804 %Butler County11.804Boyd County: 11.625 %Boyd County11.625Adair County: 11.478 %Adair County11.478Marshall County: 11.357 %Marshall County11.357Webster County: 11.185 %Webster County11.185Green County: 11.144 %Green County11.144Hardin County: 11.143 %Hardin County11.143Clay County: 11.119 %Clay County11.119Lee County: 39.479 %Lee County39.479Elliott County: 34.768 %Elliott County34.768Morgan County: 24.427 %Morgan County24.427Livingston County: 21.829 %Livingston County21.829Owen County: 21.091 %Owen County21.091Fulton County: 20.012 %Fulton County20.012Ballard County: 18.394 %Ballard County18.394Magoffin County: 17.58 %Magoffin County17.58Robertson County: 16.997 %Robertson County16.997Powell County: 16.467 %Powell County16.467Martin County: 15.962 %Martin County15.962Carlisle County: 15.137 %Carlisle County15.137Garrard County: 14.989 %Garrard County14.989Nicholas County: 14.815 %Nicholas County14.815Muhlenberg County: 14.671 %Muhlenberg County14.671Greenup County: 14.627 %Greenup County14.627Letcher County: 14.532 %Letcher County14.532Todd County: 14.218 %Todd County14.218Hickman County: 14.198 %Hickman County14.198McCreary County: 13.738 %McCreary County13.738Estill County: 13.54 %Estill County13.54McLean County: 13.538 %McLean County13.538Wolfe County: 13.273 %Wolfe County13.273Clark County: 13.192 %Clark County13.192Crittenden County: 13.094 %Crittenden County13.094Laurel County: 13.08 %Laurel County13.08Bell County: 12.768 %Bell County12.768Lewis County: 12.659 %Lewis County12.659Mason County: 12.622 %Mason County12.622Bracken County: 12.017 %Bracken County12.017Ohio County: 11.955 %Ohio County11.955Boyle County: 11.869 %Boyle County11.869Butler County: 11.804 %Butler County11.804Boyd County: 11.625 %Boyd County11.625Adair County: 11.478 %Adair County11.478Marshall County: 11.357 %Marshall County11.357Webster County: 11.185 %Webster County11.185Green County: 11.144 %Green County11.144Hardin County: 11.143 %Hardin County11.143Clay County: 11.119 %Clay County11.119
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2019 (%)Change on 2018
1Lee County39.479+33.8 pts
2Elliott County34.768+22.54 pts
3Morgan County24.427+7 pts
4Livingston County21.829+3.38 pts
5Owen County21.091-8.51 pts
6Fulton County20.012+12.76 pts
7Ballard County18.394+13.37 pts
8Magoffin County17.58+6.37 pts
9Robertson County16.997+3.51 pts
10Powell County16.467-2.8 pts
11Martin County15.962-11.32 pts
12Carlisle County15.137-1.21 pts
13Garrard County14.989+0.17 pts
14Nicholas County14.815+5.74 pts
15Muhlenberg County14.671+1.6 pts
16Greenup County14.627+7.43 pts
17Letcher County14.532+6.86 pts
18Todd County14.218-0.7 pts
19Hickman County14.198+0.29 pts
20McCreary County13.738-0.78 pts
21Estill County13.54+2.82 pts
22McLean County13.538-0.98 pts
23Wolfe County13.273+5.86 pts
24Clark County13.192-0.6 pts
25Crittenden County13.094-3.02 pts
26Laurel County13.08+5.5 pts
27Bell County12.768+0.59 pts
28Lewis County12.659+2.67 pts
29Mason County12.622+4.35 pts
30Bracken County12.017+1.15 pts
31Ohio County11.955-3.89 pts
32Boyle County11.869-5.39 pts
33Butler County11.804-9.24 pts
34Boyd County11.625+0.05 pts
35Adair County11.478+0.61 pts
36Marshall County11.357-6.96 pts
37Webster County11.185-8.82 pts
38Green County11.144-3.85 pts
39Hardin County11.143+0.23 pts
40Clay County11.119-1.54 pts
41Pulaski County11.082+0.23 pts
42Edmonson County11.081-5.75 pts
43Knott County10.947+5.13 pts
44Franklin County10.891+2.3 pts
45Carter County10.809+1.46 pts
46Lincoln County10.807+0.04 pts
47Breckinridge County10.596+0.22 pts
48Meade County10.532+1.32 pts
49Bourbon County10.377-2.53 pts
50Montgomery County10.372+0.76 pts
51Spencer County10.284-6.27 pts
52Madison County10.251+2.53 pts
53Caldwell County10.122-13.61 pts
54Hopkins County10.002-0.73 pts
55Henry County9.918+1.06 pts
56Jefferson County9.909-0.1 pts
57Rockcastle County9.871+2.26 pts
58Monroe County9.857+0.98 pts
59Harlan County9.832+1.37 pts
60Casey County9.648-4.22 pts
61Pike County9.568-0.95 pts
62Christian County9.553+0.36 pts
63Leslie County9.545-0.2 pts
64Whitley County9.526-0.52 pts
65Russell County9.49+1.53 pts
66Kenton County9.478+1.11 pts
67Floyd County9.463-4.56 pts
68Jessamine County9.442+0.07 pts
69Marion County9.44+3.13 pts
70Henderson County9.411+0.9 pts
71Hart County9.383+1.39 pts
72Trigg County9.315-1.36 pts
73Daviess County9.233-1.8 pts
74Shelby County9.189-2.61 pts
75Perry County8.988-0.32 pts
76Rowan County8.967+0.95 pts
77Boone County8.964-1.04 pts
78Barren County8.957-3.67 pts
79Owsley County8.878+2.15 pts
80Warren County8.873-3.17 pts
81Fayette County8.872-1.36 pts
82Knox County8.81+1.56 pts
83Jackson County8.792-0.15 pts
84Campbell County8.742+0.22 pts
85Fleming County8.632-1.56 pts
86Union County8.63+0.88 pts
87Johnson County8.576-2.82 pts
88Bullitt County8.571-4.01 pts
89Calloway County8.519+0.82 pts
90McCracken County8.433-7.56 pts
91Breathitt County8.328+0.52 pts
92Cumberland County8.273+0.4 pts
93Lyon County8.188-3.98 pts
94Washington County7.912+1.37 pts
95Larue County7.842-4.49 pts
96Oldham County7.765-4.31 pts
97Grant County7.759-2.67 pts
98Graves County7.729-8.5 pts
99Simpson County7.727-4.87 pts
100Trimble County7.618-6.26 pts
101Anderson County7.576-3.35 pts
102Pendleton County7.511-8.4 pts
103Mercer County7.385-9.04 pts
104Bath County7.315-9.29 pts
105Grayson County7.246-2.02 pts
106Metcalfe County7.228+1.35 pts
107Scott County7.015+0.88 pts
108Taylor County6.871+1.02 pts
109Lawrence County6.863-0.16 pts
110Wayne County6.805-0.92 pts
111Harrison County6.726+0.02 pts
112Menifee County6.537-22.8 pts
113Clinton County6.477+0.28 pts
114Nelson County6.083-9.79 pts
115Woodford County5.885-3.94 pts
116Logan County5.806-4.14 pts
117Gallatin County5.131-1.93 pts
118Allen County3.827-5.66 pts
119Carroll County3.54-3.85 pts
120Hancock County2.997-1.63 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs lost at closing and shrinking 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 added elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is job_creation_rate minus this rate. Not a layoff rate: it counts positions lost at establishments, not people who lost a job. 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 destruction 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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019) [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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019. 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-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019. 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-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019 [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-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_kentucky_by_2019,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019}},
  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-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction 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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate, 2019
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-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2019.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction 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 destruction rate?

Lee County, with 39.479% in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Hancock County, with 2.997% in 2019.

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 destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Job destruction rate: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings