Data / Rankings / Job destruction rate / Counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky by job destruction rate

Breathitt County had the highest job destruction rate of 120 counties in 2020, at 51.46%. Hancock County had the lowest, at 5.06%. The median was 11.629% and the figure for Kentucky was 11.01%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest51.46Breathitt County
Lowest5.06Hancock County
Median11.629120 counties
Kentucky11.01History

Map of counties, 2020

Adair County: 9.926 %Allen County: 13.937 %Anderson County: 9.84 %Ballard County: 14.515 %Barren County: 13.241 %Bath County: 7.613 %Bell County: 15.131 %Boone County: 9.645 %Bourbon County: 8.138 %Boyd County: 8.962 %Boyle County: 6.928 %Bracken County: 17.822 %Breathitt County: 51.46 %Breckinridge County: 9.551 %Bullitt County: 11.419 %Butler County: 10.91 %Caldwell County: 15.463 %Calloway County: 20.403 %Campbell County: 11.858 %Carlisle County: 12.391 %Carroll County: 12.133 %Carter County: 6.171 %Casey County: 6.928 %Christian County: 12.053 %Clark County: 12.954 %Clay County: 10.583 %Clinton County: 18.515 %Crittenden County: 28.502 %Cumberland County: 11.967 %Daviess County: 9.282 %Edmonson County: 22.311 %Elliott County: 10.526 %Estill County: 8.14 %Fayette County: 11.614 %Fleming County: 13.022 %Floyd County: 16.08 %Franklin County: 12.799 %Fulton County: 8.679 %Gallatin County: 5.263 %Garrard County: 17.122 %Grant County: 8.29 %Graves County: 10.866 %Grayson County: 12.483 %Green County: 7.567 %Greenup County: 9.436 %Hancock County: 5.06 %Hardin County: 9.055 %Harlan County: 29.577 %Harrison County: 6.911 %Hart County: 11.15 %Henderson County: 12.687 %Henry County: 10.665 %Hickman County: 8.505 %Hopkins County: 10.814 %Jackson County: 7.118 %Jefferson County: 10.032 %Jessamine County: 10.827 %Johnson County: 12.041 %Kenton County: 9.9 %Knott County: 37.81 %Knox County: 13.76 %Larue County: 7.216 %Laurel County: 11.703 %Lawrence County: 9.666 %Lee County: 7.097 %Leslie County: 7.2 %Letcher County: 18.112 %Lewis County: 13.382 %Lincoln County: 12.292 %Livingston County: 16.837 %Logan County: 10.937 %Lyon County: 19.721 %McCracken County: 10.701 %McCreary County: 15.192 %McLean County: 30.004 %Madison County: 11.996 %Magoffin County: 12.589 %Marion County: 12.225 %Marshall County: 12.723 %Martin County: 17.001 %Mason County: 8.877 %Meade County: 12.933 %Menifee County: 14.99 %Mercer County: 7.225 %Metcalfe County: 9.026 %Monroe County: 8.785 %Montgomery County: 13.271 %Morgan County: 10.689 %Muhlenberg County: 24.758 %Nelson County: 10.531 %Nicholas County: 16.591 %Ohio County: 14.86 %Oldham County: 9.703 %Owen County: 17.831 %Owsley County: 12.531 %Pendleton County: 11.265 %Perry County: 10.734 %Pike County: 14.9 %Powell County: 13.708 %Pulaski County: 11.644 %Robertson County: 16.156 %Rockcastle County: 7.361 %Rowan County: 16.415 %Russell County: 8.085 %Scott County: 8.225 %Shelby County: 9.226 %Simpson County: 12.823 %Spencer County: 10.482 %Taylor County: 5.744 %Todd County: 13.025 %Trigg County: 15.88 %Trimble County: 12.853 %Union County: 8.075 %Warren County: 10.373 %Washington County: 10.891 %Wayne County: 7.26 %Webster County: 13 %Whitley County: 10.499 %Wolfe County: 11.878 %Woodford County: 19.572 %
  • Under 8.2
  • 8.2 to 10
  • 10 to 12
  • 12 to 13
  • 13 to 16
  • 16 and over
%, 2020. 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, 2020

Breathitt County: 51.46 %Breathitt County51.46Knott County: 37.81 %Knott County37.81McLean County: 30.004 %McLean County30.004Harlan County: 29.577 %Harlan County29.577Crittenden County: 28.502 %Crittenden County28.502Muhlenberg County: 24.758 %Muhlenberg County24.758Edmonson County: 22.311 %Edmonson County22.311Calloway County: 20.403 %Calloway County20.403Lyon County: 19.721 %Lyon County19.721Woodford County: 19.572 %Woodford County19.572Clinton County: 18.515 %Clinton County18.515Letcher County: 18.112 %Letcher County18.112Owen County: 17.831 %Owen County17.831Bracken County: 17.822 %Bracken County17.822Garrard County: 17.122 %Garrard County17.122Martin County: 17.001 %Martin County17.001Livingston County: 16.837 %Livingston County16.837Nicholas County: 16.591 %Nicholas County16.591Rowan County: 16.415 %Rowan County16.415Robertson County: 16.156 %Robertson County16.156Floyd County: 16.08 %Floyd County16.08Trigg County: 15.88 %Trigg County15.88Caldwell County: 15.463 %Caldwell County15.463McCreary County: 15.192 %McCreary County15.192Bell County: 15.131 %Bell County15.131Menifee County: 14.99 %Menifee County14.99Pike County: 14.9 %Pike County14.9Ohio County: 14.86 %Ohio County14.86Ballard County: 14.515 %Ballard County14.515Allen County: 13.937 %Allen County13.937Knox County: 13.76 %Knox County13.76Powell County: 13.708 %Powell County13.708Lewis County: 13.382 %Lewis County13.382Montgomery County: 13.271 %Montgomery County13.271Barren County: 13.241 %Barren County13.241Todd County: 13.025 %Todd County13.025Fleming County: 13.022 %Fleming County13.022Webster County: 13 %Webster County13Clark County: 12.954 %Clark County12.954Meade County: 12.933 %Meade County12.933Breathitt County: 51.46 %Breathitt County51.46Knott County: 37.81 %Knott County37.81McLean County: 30.004 %McLean County30.004Harlan County: 29.577 %Harlan County29.577Crittenden County: 28.502 %Crittenden County28.502Muhlenberg County: 24.758 %Muhlenberg County24.758Edmonson County: 22.311 %Edmonson County22.311Calloway County: 20.403 %Calloway County20.403Lyon County: 19.721 %Lyon County19.721Woodford County: 19.572 %Woodford County19.572Clinton County: 18.515 %Clinton County18.515Letcher County: 18.112 %Letcher County18.112Owen County: 17.831 %Owen County17.831Bracken County: 17.822 %Bracken County17.822Garrard County: 17.122 %Garrard County17.122Martin County: 17.001 %Martin County17.001Livingston County: 16.837 %Livingston County16.837Nicholas County: 16.591 %Nicholas County16.591Rowan County: 16.415 %Rowan County16.415Robertson County: 16.156 %Robertson County16.156Floyd County: 16.08 %Floyd County16.08Trigg County: 15.88 %Trigg County15.88Caldwell County: 15.463 %Caldwell County15.463McCreary County: 15.192 %McCreary County15.192Bell County: 15.131 %Bell County15.131Menifee County: 14.99 %Menifee County14.99Pike County: 14.9 %Pike County14.9Ohio County: 14.86 %Ohio County14.86Ballard County: 14.515 %Ballard County14.515Allen County: 13.937 %Allen County13.937Knox County: 13.76 %Knox County13.76Powell County: 13.708 %Powell County13.708Lewis County: 13.382 %Lewis County13.382Montgomery County: 13.271 %Montgomery County13.271Barren County: 13.241 %Barren County13.241Todd County: 13.025 %Todd County13.025Fleming County: 13.022 %Fleming County13.022Webster County: 13 %Webster County13Clark County: 12.954 %Clark County12.954Meade County: 12.933 %Meade County12.933
%. 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

RankCounties2020 (%)Change on 2019
1Breathitt County51.46+43.13 pts
2Knott County37.81+26.86 pts
3McLean County30.004+16.47 pts
4Harlan County29.577+19.75 pts
5Crittenden County28.502+15.41 pts
6Muhlenberg County24.758+10.09 pts
7Edmonson County22.311+11.23 pts
8Calloway County20.403+11.88 pts
9Lyon County19.721+11.53 pts
10Woodford County19.572+13.69 pts
11Clinton County18.515+12.04 pts
12Letcher County18.112+3.58 pts
13Owen County17.831-3.26 pts
14Bracken County17.822+5.8 pts
15Garrard County17.122+2.13 pts
16Martin County17.001+1.04 pts
17Livingston County16.837-4.99 pts
18Nicholas County16.591+1.78 pts
19Rowan County16.415+7.45 pts
20Robertson County16.156-0.84 pts
21Floyd County16.08+6.62 pts
22Trigg County15.88+6.57 pts
23Caldwell County15.463+5.34 pts
24McCreary County15.192+1.45 pts
25Bell County15.131+2.36 pts
26Menifee County14.99+8.45 pts
27Pike County14.9+5.33 pts
28Ohio County14.86+2.9 pts
29Ballard County14.515-3.88 pts
30Allen County13.937+10.11 pts
31Knox County13.76+4.95 pts
32Powell County13.708-2.76 pts
33Lewis County13.382+0.72 pts
34Montgomery County13.271+2.9 pts
35Barren County13.241+4.28 pts
36Todd County13.025-1.19 pts
37Fleming County13.022+4.39 pts
38Webster County13+1.81 pts
39Clark County12.954-0.24 pts
40Meade County12.933+2.4 pts
41Trimble County12.853+5.23 pts
42Simpson County12.823+5.1 pts
43Franklin County12.799+1.91 pts
44Marshall County12.723+1.37 pts
45Henderson County12.687+3.28 pts
46Magoffin County12.589-4.99 pts
47Owsley County12.531+3.65 pts
48Grayson County12.483+5.24 pts
49Carlisle County12.391-2.75 pts
50Lincoln County12.292+1.48 pts
51Marion County12.225+2.79 pts
52Carroll County12.133+8.59 pts
53Christian County12.053+2.5 pts
54Johnson County12.041+3.46 pts
55Madison County11.996+1.75 pts
56Cumberland County11.967+3.69 pts
57Wolfe County11.878-1.39 pts
58Campbell County11.858+3.12 pts
59Laurel County11.703-1.38 pts
60Pulaski County11.644+0.56 pts
61Fayette County11.614+2.74 pts
62Bullitt County11.419+2.85 pts
63Pendleton County11.265+3.75 pts
64Hart County11.15+1.77 pts
65Logan County10.937+5.13 pts
66Butler County10.91-0.89 pts
67Washington County10.891+2.98 pts
68Graves County10.866+3.14 pts
69Jessamine County10.827+1.38 pts
70Hopkins County10.814+0.81 pts
71Perry County10.734+1.75 pts
72McCracken County10.701+2.27 pts
73Morgan County10.689-13.74 pts
74Henry County10.665+0.75 pts
75Clay County10.583-0.54 pts
76Nelson County10.531+4.45 pts
77Elliott County10.526-24.24 pts
78Whitley County10.499+0.97 pts
79Spencer County10.482+0.2 pts
80Warren County10.373+1.5 pts
81Jefferson County10.032+0.12 pts
82Adair County9.926-1.55 pts
83Kenton County9.9+0.42 pts
84Anderson County9.84+2.26 pts
85Oldham County9.703+1.94 pts
86Lawrence County9.666+2.8 pts
87Boone County9.645+0.68 pts
88Breckinridge County9.551-1.04 pts
89Greenup County9.436-5.19 pts
90Daviess County9.282+0.05 pts
91Shelby County9.226+0.04 pts
92Hardin County9.055-2.09 pts
93Metcalfe County9.026+1.8 pts
94Boyd County8.962-2.66 pts
95Mason County8.877-3.74 pts
96Monroe County8.785-1.07 pts
97Fulton County8.679-11.33 pts
98Hickman County8.505-5.69 pts
99Grant County8.29+0.53 pts
100Scott County8.225+1.21 pts
101Estill County8.14-5.4 pts
102Bourbon County8.138-2.24 pts
103Russell County8.085-1.4 pts
104Union County8.075-0.56 pts
105Bath County7.613+0.3 pts
106Green County7.567-3.58 pts
107Rockcastle County7.361-2.51 pts
108Wayne County7.26+0.46 pts
109Mercer County7.225-0.16 pts
110Larue County7.216-0.63 pts
111Leslie County7.2-2.34 pts
112Jackson County7.118-1.67 pts
113Lee County7.097-32.38 pts
114Boyle County6.928-4.94 pts
114Casey County6.928-2.72 pts
116Harrison County6.911+0.18 pts
117Carter County6.171-4.64 pts
118Taylor County5.744-1.13 pts
119Gallatin County5.263+0.13 pts
120Hancock County5.06+2.06 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, 2020) [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, 2020. 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=2020. 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, 2020. 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=2020.

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, 2020 [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=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_kentucky_by_2020,
  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, 2020}},
  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=2020. 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, 2020
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=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/kentucky-counties?period=2020.
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?

Breathitt County, with 51.46% in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Hancock County, with 5.06% in 2020.

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