Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid

Jefferson County had the highest wages and salaries paid of 120 counties in 2019, at $28.65 billion. Robertson County had the lowest, at $10.09 million. The median was $192.02 million and the figure for Kentucky was $96.71 billion. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest28,653Jefferson County
Median192120 counties
Kentucky96,710.4History

Map of counties, 2019

Adair County: 165 USD millionAllen County: 186.5 USD millionAnderson County: 205.2 USD millionBallard County: 83.6 USD millionBarren County: 644.7 USD millionBath County: 81.3 USD millionBell County: 297.8 USD millionBoone County: 4,731.7 USD millionBourbon County: 314.6 USD millionBoyd County: 1,243.2 USD millionBoyle County: 632.2 USD millionBracken County: 50.8 USD millionBreathitt County: 105.3 USD millionBreckinridge County: 136.7 USD millionBullitt County: 1,126.6 USD millionButler County: 111.4 USD millionCaldwell County: 159.8 USD millionCalloway County: 636.3 USD millionCampbell County: 1,460.3 USD millionCarlisle County: 37.7 USD millionCarroll County: 434.6 USD millionCarter County: 198.7 USD millionCasey County: 137.4 USD millionChristian County: 3,221.6 USD millionClark County: 676.9 USD millionClay County: 156.2 USD millionClinton County: 127.4 USD millionCrittenden County: 68.4 USD millionCumberland County: 77.9 USD millionDaviess County: 2,088.6 USD millionEdmonson County: 60.4 USD millionElliott County: 32.1 USD millionEstill County: 92.8 USD millionFayette County: 10,450.5 USD millionFleming County: 128.1 USD millionFloyd County: 444.4 USD millionFranklin County: 1,516.5 USD millionFulton County: 78.4 USD millionGallatin County: 142 USD millionGarrard County: 88.9 USD millionGrant County: 217.6 USD millionGraves County: 478.9 USD millionGrayson County: 300.5 USD millionGreen County: 62.7 USD millionGreenup County: 366.9 USD millionHancock County: 294.7 USD millionHardin County: 2,620.5 USD millionHarlan County: 235.7 USD millionHarrison County: 232 USD millionHart County: 204 USD millionHenderson County: 883.9 USD millionHenry County: 119.4 USD millionHickman County: 31.6 USD millionHopkins County: 761.1 USD millionJackson County: 60 USD millionJefferson County: 28,653 USD millionJessamine County: 753.6 USD millionJohnson County: 196.2 USD millionKenton County: 4,184.9 USD millionKnott County: 85.9 USD millionKnox County: 284 USD millionLarue County: 94.4 USD millionLaurel County: 1,038.3 USD millionLawrence County: 134.9 USD millionLee County: 64.2 USD millionLeslie County: 63.2 USD millionLetcher County: 165.7 USD millionLewis County: 71.3 USD millionLincoln County: 152.7 USD millionLivingston County: 129.4 USD millionLogan County: 431.4 USD millionLyon County: 90.3 USD millionMcCracken County: 1,880.3 USD millionMcCreary County: 106.1 USD millionMcLean County: 81.7 USD millionMadison County: 1,529.9 USD millionMagoffin County: 61.8 USD millionMarion County: 378.8 USD millionMarshall County: 611 USD millionMartin County: 108.8 USD millionMason County: 379.6 USD millionMeade County: 182.2 USD millionMenifee County: 34.7 USD millionMercer County: 331.1 USD millionMetcalfe County: 75.5 USD millionMonroe County: 120.7 USD millionMontgomery County: 441.5 USD millionMorgan County: 115 USD millionMuhlenberg County: 368.4 USD millionNelson County: 745.1 USD millionNicholas County: 30.7 USD millionOhio County: 303.2 USD millionOldham County: 824.9 USD millionOwen County: 62.8 USD millionOwsley County: 21.9 USD millionPendleton County: 103 USD millionPerry County: 474.9 USD millionPike County: 958.8 USD millionPowell County: 89.9 USD millionPulaski County: 1,049.4 USD millionRobertson County: 10.1 USD millionRockcastle County: 147.7 USD millionRowan County: 387.3 USD millionRussell County: 204.9 USD millionScott County: 1,727.7 USD millionShelby County: 738.6 USD millionSimpson County: 400.3 USD millionSpencer County: 81.6 USD millionTaylor County: 446.4 USD millionTodd County: 90.1 USD millionTrigg County: 110 USD millionTrimble County: 61 USD millionUnion County: 250.5 USD millionWarren County: 2,991.2 USD millionWashington County: 146.7 USD millionWayne County: 187.8 USD millionWebster County: 160.1 USD millionWhitley County: 514.3 USD millionWolfe County: 40.8 USD millionWoodford County: 446.6 USD million
  • Under 100
  • 100 to 200
  • 200 to 400
  • 400 to 800
  • 800 and over
USD million, 2019. Source: BEA, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2019

Jefferson County: 28,653 USD millionJefferson County28,653Fayette County: 10,450.5 USD millionFayette County10,450.5Boone County: 4,731.7 USD millionBoone County4,731.7Kenton County: 4,184.9 USD millionKenton County4,184.9Christian County: 3,221.6 USD millionChristian County3,221.6Warren County: 2,991.2 USD millionWarren County2,991.2Hardin County: 2,620.5 USD millionHardin County2,620.5Daviess County: 2,088.6 USD millionDaviess County2,088.6McCracken County: 1,880.3 USD millionMcCracken County1,880.3Scott County: 1,727.7 USD millionScott County1,727.7Madison County: 1,529.9 USD millionMadison County1,529.9Franklin County: 1,516.5 USD millionFranklin County1,516.5Campbell County: 1,460.3 USD millionCampbell County1,460.3Boyd County: 1,243.2 USD millionBoyd County1,243.2Bullitt County: 1,126.6 USD millionBullitt County1,126.6Pulaski County: 1,049.4 USD millionPulaski County1,049.4Laurel County: 1,038.3 USD millionLaurel County1,038.3Pike County: 958.8 USD millionPike County958.8Henderson County: 883.9 USD millionHenderson County883.9Oldham County: 824.9 USD millionOldham County824.9Hopkins County: 761.1 USD millionHopkins County761.1Jessamine County: 753.6 USD millionJessamine County753.6Nelson County: 745.1 USD millionNelson County745.1Shelby County: 738.6 USD millionShelby County738.6Clark County: 676.9 USD millionClark County676.9Barren County: 644.7 USD millionBarren County644.7Calloway County: 636.3 USD millionCalloway County636.3Boyle County: 632.2 USD millionBoyle County632.2Marshall County: 611 USD millionMarshall County611Whitley County: 514.3 USD millionWhitley County514.3Graves County: 478.9 USD millionGraves County478.9Perry County: 474.9 USD millionPerry County474.9Woodford County: 446.6 USD millionWoodford County446.6Taylor County: 446.4 USD millionTaylor County446.4Floyd County: 444.4 USD millionFloyd County444.4Montgomery County: 441.5 USD millionMontgomery County441.5Carroll County: 434.6 USD millionCarroll County434.6Logan County: 431.4 USD millionLogan County431.4Simpson County: 400.3 USD millionSimpson County400.3Rowan County: 387.3 USD millionRowan County387.3Jefferson County: 28,653 USD millionJefferson County28,653Fayette County: 10,450.5 USD millionFayette County10,450.5Boone County: 4,731.7 USD millionBoone County4,731.7Kenton County: 4,184.9 USD millionKenton County4,184.9Christian County: 3,221.6 USD millionChristian County3,221.6Warren County: 2,991.2 USD millionWarren County2,991.2Hardin County: 2,620.5 USD millionHardin County2,620.5Daviess County: 2,088.6 USD millionDaviess County2,088.6McCracken County: 1,880.3 USD millionMcCracken County1,880.3Scott County: 1,727.7 USD millionScott County1,727.7Madison County: 1,529.9 USD millionMadison County1,529.9Franklin County: 1,516.5 USD millionFranklin County1,516.5Campbell County: 1,460.3 USD millionCampbell County1,460.3Boyd County: 1,243.2 USD millionBoyd County1,243.2Bullitt County: 1,126.6 USD millionBullitt County1,126.6Pulaski County: 1,049.4 USD millionPulaski County1,049.4Laurel County: 1,038.3 USD millionLaurel County1,038.3Pike County: 958.8 USD millionPike County958.8Henderson County: 883.9 USD millionHenderson County883.9Oldham County: 824.9 USD millionOldham County824.9Hopkins County: 761.1 USD millionHopkins County761.1Jessamine County: 753.6 USD millionJessamine County753.6Nelson County: 745.1 USD millionNelson County745.1Shelby County: 738.6 USD millionShelby County738.6Clark County: 676.9 USD millionClark County676.9Barren County: 644.7 USD millionBarren County644.7Calloway County: 636.3 USD millionCalloway County636.3Boyle County: 632.2 USD millionBoyle County632.2Marshall County: 611 USD millionMarshall County611Whitley County: 514.3 USD millionWhitley County514.3Graves County: 478.9 USD millionGraves County478.9Perry County: 474.9 USD millionPerry County474.9Woodford County: 446.6 USD millionWoodford County446.6Taylor County: 446.4 USD millionTaylor County446.4Floyd County: 444.4 USD millionFloyd County444.4Montgomery County: 441.5 USD millionMontgomery County441.5Carroll County: 434.6 USD millionCarroll County434.6Logan County: 431.4 USD millionLogan County431.4Simpson County: 400.3 USD millionSimpson County400.3Rowan County: 387.3 USD millionRowan County387.3
USD million. Source: BEA, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2019
USD million
Change on 2018
1Jefferson County28,653+4.6%
2Fayette County10,450.5+4.2%
3Boone County4,731.7+2.3%
4Kenton County4,184.9+5.9%
5Christian County3,221.6-0.2%
6Warren County2,991.2+3.3%
7Hardin County2,620.5+3.3%
8Daviess County2,088.6+1.5%
9McCracken County1,880.3+4.1%
10Scott County1,727.7+14.6%
11Madison County1,529.9+3.7%
12Franklin County1,516.5+1.6%
13Campbell County1,460.3+1.4%
14Boyd County1,243.2+2.5%
15Bullitt County1,126.6+4.2%
16Pulaski County1,049.4+5.6%
17Laurel County1,038.3-0.2%
18Pike County958.8+0.6%
19Henderson County883.9-0.5%
20Oldham County824.9+6%
21Hopkins County761.1+3.7%
22Jessamine County753.6+3.5%
23Nelson County745.1+4.3%
24Shelby County738.6+1.7%
25Clark County676.9+1.6%
26Barren County644.7+0.4%
27Calloway County636.3+0.8%
28Boyle County632.2+3.1%
29Marshall County611+1.9%
30Whitley County514.3+4.3%
31Graves County478.9+7.1%
32Perry County474.9+3.6%
33Woodford County446.6+1.7%
34Taylor County446.4+4.6%
35Floyd County444.4+1.6%
36Montgomery County441.5+1.4%
37Carroll County434.6+6.1%
38Logan County431.4+2.6%
39Simpson County400.3+3.9%
40Rowan County387.3+0.7%
41Mason County379.6+1.6%
42Marion County378.8+1.2%
43Muhlenberg County368.4+4.7%
44Greenup County366.9-3.8%
45Mercer County331.1+2.6%
46Bourbon County314.6+6%
47Ohio County303.2+0.1%
48Grayson County300.5+2.8%
49Bell County297.8-0.9%
50Hancock County294.7+4.3%
51Knox County284-1.2%
52Union County250.5+9.8%
53Harlan County235.7-0.3%
54Harrison County232+5.8%
55Grant County217.6+1.8%
56Anderson County205.2+6.3%
57Russell County204.9+3.5%
58Hart County204+1%
59Carter County198.7+0.9%
60Johnson County196.2+2.5%
61Wayne County187.8-1.8%
62Allen County186.5+4%
63Meade County182.2+3%
64Letcher County165.7+1.2%
65Adair County165-0%
66Webster County160.1+0.7%
67Caldwell County159.8+6.2%
68Clay County156.2-0.5%
69Lincoln County152.7+4%
70Rockcastle County147.7+2.3%
71Washington County146.7+3.2%
72Gallatin County142+8.3%
73Casey County137.4+2.6%
74Breckinridge County136.7+1.5%
75Lawrence County134.9+5.3%
76Livingston County129.4+9.3%
77Fleming County128.1+4.7%
78Clinton County127.4+3.1%
79Monroe County120.7+3.9%
80Henry County119.4+2.9%
81Morgan County115+4.6%
82Butler County111.4+2.7%
83Trigg County110+2.8%
84Martin County108.8-3.1%
85McCreary County106.1+2%
86Breathitt County105.3-5.7%
87Pendleton County103+1.5%
88Larue County94.4+1.2%
89Estill County92.8+3.8%
90Lyon County90.3+3.4%
91Todd County90.1+2.4%
92Powell County89.9+1.6%
93Garrard County88.90%
94Knott County85.9+4.4%
95Ballard County83.6+12.7%
96McLean County81.7+9.7%
97Spencer County81.6+4.4%
98Bath County81.3+9%
99Fulton County78.4+1.2%
100Cumberland County77.9+10.2%
101Metcalfe County75.5+4.6%
102Lewis County71.3+2.7%
103Crittenden County68.4-1.7%
104Lee County64.2+5.8%
105Leslie County63.2-4.1%
106Owen County62.8-2.1%
107Green County62.7+1.3%
108Magoffin County61.8+9.5%
109Trimble County61-2.9%
110Edmonson County60.4+2.5%
111Jackson County60+2.8%
112Bracken County50.8-8.5%
113Wolfe County40.8+3.9%
114Carlisle County37.7+7.3%
115Menifee County34.7+5.9%
116Elliott County32.1-1.5%
117Hickman County31.6-3.3%
118Nicholas County30.7-2.1%
119Owsley County21.9+4.9%
120Robertson County10.1+3.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Total wages and salaries paid to employees for jobs located in a place, including tips, bonuses and pay in kind, before deductions, in millions of current US dollars. United States: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional accounts, table SAINC4 line 50 for the nation and states and CAINC4 line 50 for counties.

Counted where the jobs are, not where the workers live, so places with many commuters coming in can pay more in wages than their residents receive in personal income (the District of Columbia does). Excludes employer contributions to pensions, insurance and social security, and the income of the self-employed.

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 Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. 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. Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2026). CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents (Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip

MLA 9

CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 5 Feb. 2026, https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. 2026. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (2026) CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents, Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_kentucky_by_2019,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis}},
  title = {{CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
TI  - CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents: Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid, 2019
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/02/05
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2019.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"wages_and_salaries","level":"province","within":"Kentucky","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=wages_and_salaries&level=province&within=Kentucky&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest wages and salaries paid?

Jefferson County, with $28.65 billion in 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Which county has the lowest wages and salaries paid?

Robertson County, with $10.09 million in 2019.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4: personal income by major component, wages and salaries (published in thousands of dollars, shown in millions), individual counties and county equivalents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Wages and salaries paid: other rankings

Counties in Kentucky: more rankings