Counties in Kentucky by unemployment rate, August 2026

Martin County had the highest unemployment rate of 120 counties in August 2026, at 8.5%. Woodford County had the lowest, at 3.2%. The median was 4.4% and the figure for Kentucky was 4.7%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest8.5Martin County
Median4.4120 counties
Kentucky4.7History

Top 40 counties, August 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Martin CountyMartin County: 8.5 %8.5Magoffin CountyMagoffin County: 7.6 %7.6Wolfe CountyWolfe County: 7.1 %7.1Elliott CountyElliott County: 7 %7Lewis CountyLewis County: 6.9 %6.9Carter CountyCarter County: 6.5 %6.5Jackson CountyJackson County: 6.5 %6.5Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 6.3 %6.3Pike CountyPike County: 6.1 %6.1Harlan CountyHarlan County: 5.9 %5.9Knott CountyKnott County: 5.8 %5.8Knox CountyKnox County: 5.8 %5.8Johnson CountyJohnson County: 5.7 %5.7McCreary CountyMcCreary County: 5.7 %5.7Wayne CountyWayne County: 5.7 %5.7Clay CountyClay County: 5.6 %5.6Floyd CountyFloyd County: 5.5 %5.5Grayson CountyGrayson County: 5.5 %5.5Christian CountyChristian County: 5.4 %5.4Greenup CountyGreenup County: 5.4 %5.4Bell CountyBell County: 5.3 %5.3Estill CountyEstill County: 5.2 %5.2Laurel CountyLaurel County: 5.2 %5.2Mason CountyMason County: 5.2 %5.2Menifee CountyMenifee County: 5.2 %5.2Robertson CountyRobertson County: 5.2 %5.2Rowan CountyRowan County: 5.1 %5.1Breathitt CountyBreathitt County: 5 %5Edmonson CountyEdmonson County: 5 %5Bath CountyBath County: 4.9 %4.9Boyd CountyBoyd County: 4.9 %4.9Clinton CountyClinton County: 4.9 %4.9Morgan CountyMorgan County: 4.9 %4.9Muhlenberg CountyMuhlenberg County: 4.9 %4.9Rockcastle CountyRockcastle County: 4.9 %4.9Fulton CountyFulton County: 4.8 %4.8Leslie CountyLeslie County: 4.8 %4.8Madison CountyMadison County: 4.8 %4.8Butler CountyButler County: 4.7 %4.7Calloway CountyCalloway County: 4.7 %4.7
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesAugust 2026 (%)Change on August 2025
1Martin County Provisional8.5-0.6 pts
2Magoffin County Provisional7.6-0.6 pts
3Wolfe County Provisional7.10 pts
4Elliott County Provisional7-0.1 pts
5Lewis County Provisional6.9-0.3 pts
6Carter County Provisional6.5-0.2 pts
6Jackson County Provisional6.5-0.4 pts
8Lawrence County Provisional6.3-0.3 pts
9Pike County Provisional6.10 pts
10Harlan County Provisional5.9-0.9 pts
11Knott County Provisional5.8-0.3 pts
11Knox County Provisional5.8-0.5 pts
13Johnson County Provisional5.7-0.4 pts
13McCreary County Provisional5.7-0.2 pts
13Wayne County Provisional5.70 pts
16Clay County Provisional5.6-0.5 pts
17Floyd County Provisional5.5-0.5 pts
17Grayson County Provisional5.5-0.2 pts
19Christian County Provisional5.40 pts
19Greenup County Provisional5.4-0.2 pts
21Bell County Provisional5.3-0.7 pts
22Estill County Provisional5.2-0.1 pts
22Laurel County Provisional5.2-0.1 pts
22Mason County Provisional5.2-0.4 pts
22Menifee County Provisional5.2-0.2 pts
22Robertson County Provisional5.2+0.2 pts
27Rowan County Provisional5.1-0.6 pts
28Breathitt County Provisional5-0.6 pts
28Edmonson County Provisional5-0.1 pts
30Bath County Provisional4.9-0.6 pts
30Boyd County Provisional4.9-0.3 pts
30Clinton County Provisional4.9-0.3 pts
30Morgan County Provisional4.9-0.2 pts
30Muhlenberg County Provisional4.9-0.4 pts
30Rockcastle County Provisional4.90 pts
36Fulton County Provisional4.8+0.1 pts
36Leslie County Provisional4.8-0.5 pts
36Madison County Provisional4.8+0.2 pts
39Butler County Provisional4.7+0.1 pts
39Calloway County Provisional4.7-0.4 pts
39Hardin County Provisional4.70 pts
39Letcher County Provisional4.7-0.9 pts
39Marion County Provisional4.7-0.4 pts
39Taylor County Provisional4.7-0.5 pts
45Breckinridge County Provisional4.6-0.5 pts
45Crittenden County Provisional4.60 pts
45Fleming County Provisional4.6-0.6 pts
45Green County Provisional4.6-0.2 pts
45Lincoln County Provisional4.6-0.4 pts
45Ohio County Provisional4.6-0.8 pts
45Owsley County Provisional4.6-0.5 pts
52Hickman County Provisional4.5+0.4 pts
52Livingston County Provisional4.5+0.1 pts
52Trigg County Provisional4.50 pts
55Ballard County Provisional4.4-0.3 pts
55Boyle County Provisional4.4-0.4 pts
55Bullitt County Provisional4.4+0.3 pts
55Casey County Provisional4.4-0.5 pts
55Marshall County Provisional4.4-0.2 pts
55Meade County Provisional4.4-0.1 pts
55Montgomery County Provisional4.4-0.3 pts
55Pulaski County Provisional4.4-0.1 pts
55Simpson County Provisional4.40 pts
64Barren County Provisional4.3-0.2 pts
64Hancock County Provisional4.3-0.4 pts
64Jefferson County Provisional4.30 pts
64Larue County Provisional4.3+0.1 pts
64Lee County Provisional4.3-0.1 pts
64Logan County Provisional4.30 pts
64Whitley County Provisional4.3-0.5 pts
71Adair County Provisional4.2-0.4 pts
71Carlisle County Provisional4.2-0.2 pts
71Hart County Provisional4.2-0.2 pts
71Henderson County Provisional4.2-0.1 pts
71Hopkins County Provisional4.2-0.3 pts
71Lyon County Provisional4.2+0.3 pts
71Mercer County Provisional4.2-0.1 pts
71Monroe County Provisional4.2+0.1 pts
71Perry County Provisional4.2-0.6 pts
71Spencer County Provisional4.2+0.1 pts
81McLean County Provisional4.1-0.4 pts
81Nelson County Provisional4.10 pts
81Powell County Provisional4.1-0.1 pts
81Webster County Provisional4.1-0.3 pts
85Anderson County Provisional4-0.3 pts
85Bracken County Provisional4-0.8 pts
85Gallatin County Provisional4-0.2 pts
85Henry County Provisional4-0.1 pts
85McCracken County Provisional4-0.2 pts
85Nicholas County Provisional4-0.2 pts
85Russell County Provisional4-0.4 pts
85Union County Provisional4-0.2 pts
93Bourbon County Provisional3.90 pts
93Grant County Provisional3.9-0.2 pts
93Metcalfe County Provisional3.9-0.4 pts
93Owen County Provisional3.9-0.2 pts
93Warren County Provisional3.9-0.3 pts
98Allen County Provisional3.8-0.3 pts
98Caldwell County Provisional3.8-0.3 pts
98Carroll County Provisional3.8-0.3 pts
98Daviess County Provisional3.8-0.3 pts
98Garrard County Provisional3.8-0.3 pts
98Graves County Provisional3.8-0.1 pts
98Pendleton County Provisional3.8-0.2 pts
98Trimble County Provisional3.8-0.1 pts
98Washington County Provisional3.8-0.1 pts
107Clark County Provisional3.7-0.4 pts
107Harrison County Provisional3.7-0.1 pts
107Jessamine County Provisional3.7-0.2 pts
107Oldham County Provisional3.7-0.1 pts
107Shelby County Provisional3.7-0.1 pts
112Boone County Provisional3.6-0.2 pts
112Fayette County Provisional3.6-0.1 pts
112Franklin County Provisional3.6-0.3 pts
112Kenton County Provisional3.6-0.2 pts
116Campbell County Provisional3.5-0.3 pts
116Scott County Provisional3.5-0.2 pts
116Todd County Provisional3.5-0.2 pts
119Cumberland County Provisional3.4-0.4 pts
120Woodford County Provisional3.2-0.4 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force, using the survey definition of unemployment: without work, available and looking for work. Spain: EPA, aged 16 and over. EU: Labour Force Survey, aged 15 to 74. United States: civilian labour force aged 16 and over, from the Current Population Survey for the nation and from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, consistent with that survey, for states and counties. Other countries and the World: ILO modelled estimates published by the World Bank, aged 15 and over.

Survey-based. Available for Spain, regions, provinces, EU countries, US states and US counties, not Spanish municipalities. For municipalities use registered_unemployment_rate. US national and state rates are seasonally adjusted; county rates are not. Countries without a national or Eurostat series get the annual ILO modelled estimate, a model output rather than a survey result.

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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Martin County, with 8.5% in August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Woodford County, with 3.2% in August 2026.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Unemployment rate: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings