Counties in Kentucky by wages and salaries paid

Jefferson County had the highest wages and salaries paid of 120 counties in 2022, at $33.31 billion. Robertson County had the lowest, at $12.57 million. The median was $232.17 million and the figure for Kentucky was $114.35 billion. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest33,312.2Jefferson County
Median232.2120 counties
Kentucky114,352.3History

Map of counties, 2022

Adair County: 198.3 USD millionAllen County: 222.1 USD millionAnderson County: 238.2 USD millionBallard County: 110.7 USD millionBarren County: 735.4 USD millionBath County: 98.1 USD millionBell County: 343.2 USD millionBoone County: 5,939.8 USD millionBourbon County: 397.3 USD millionBoyd County: 1,437.9 USD millionBoyle County: 760.6 USD millionBracken County: 69 USD millionBreathitt County: 112.2 USD millionBreckinridge County: 168 USD millionBullitt County: 1,557.9 USD millionButler County: 126.9 USD millionCaldwell County: 221 USD millionCalloway County: 699 USD millionCampbell County: 1,738.7 USD millionCarlisle County: 47.6 USD millionCarroll County: 581.7 USD millionCarter County: 241.7 USD millionCasey County: 170.4 USD millionChristian County: 3,693.3 USD millionClark County: 740.2 USD millionClay County: 183.7 USD millionClinton County: 141.8 USD millionCrittenden County: 79.7 USD millionCumberland County: 99.9 USD millionDaviess County: 2,430.7 USD millionEdmonson County: 69.3 USD millionElliott County: 36.5 USD millionEstill County: 108.4 USD millionFayette County: 12,518.1 USD millionFleming County: 158.4 USD millionFloyd County: 526.9 USD millionFranklin County: 1,911.1 USD millionFulton County: 100.7 USD millionGallatin County: 178.8 USD millionGarrard County: 117.8 USD millionGrant County: 273.2 USD millionGraves County: 559.1 USD millionGrayson County: 328.2 USD millionGreen County: 78.6 USD millionGreenup County: 360 USD millionHancock County: 319.9 USD millionHardin County: 3,030.2 USD millionHarlan County: 270.5 USD millionHarrison County: 263.7 USD millionHart County: 246.8 USD millionHenderson County: 1,003 USD millionHenry County: 136.5 USD millionHickman County: 36 USD millionHopkins County: 913.4 USD millionJackson County: 70.3 USD millionJefferson County: 33,312.2 USD millionJessamine County: 956.3 USD millionJohnson County: 226.1 USD millionKenton County: 5,262.8 USD millionKnott County: 86.5 USD millionKnox County: 330.9 USD millionLarue County: 116.3 USD millionLaurel County: 1,221.7 USD millionLawrence County: 180.6 USD millionLee County: 73.6 USD millionLeslie County: 70.8 USD millionLetcher County: 193.7 USD millionLewis County: 84.5 USD millionLincoln County: 180.9 USD millionLivingston County: 159.7 USD millionLogan County: 513.4 USD millionLyon County: 109.5 USD millionMcCracken County: 2,220.2 USD millionMcCreary County: 129.6 USD millionMcLean County: 72.7 USD millionMadison County: 1,761.6 USD millionMagoffin County: 73.5 USD millionMarion County: 424.9 USD millionMarshall County: 654.6 USD millionMartin County: 96.6 USD millionMason County: 403.9 USD millionMeade County: 275.9 USD millionMenifee County: 40 USD millionMercer County: 382.8 USD millionMetcalfe County: 92.2 USD millionMonroe County: 149.2 USD millionMontgomery County: 549.8 USD millionMorgan County: 135.1 USD millionMuhlenberg County: 388.6 USD millionNelson County: 947.5 USD millionNicholas County: 36.8 USD millionOhio County: 315.7 USD millionOldham County: 978.8 USD millionOwen County: 73 USD millionOwsley County: 26.5 USD millionPendleton County: 119.1 USD millionPerry County: 574.3 USD millionPike County: 1,061.9 USD millionPowell County: 116.5 USD millionPulaski County: 1,222.7 USD millionRobertson County: 12.6 USD millionRockcastle County: 163.5 USD millionRowan County: 462.2 USD millionRussell County: 252.6 USD millionScott County: 1,999.6 USD millionShelby County: 855 USD millionSimpson County: 471.8 USD millionSpencer County: 99.8 USD millionTaylor County: 500.4 USD millionTodd County: 129.4 USD millionTrigg County: 123.9 USD millionTrimble County: 65.9 USD millionUnion County: 282.2 USD millionWarren County: 3,623.5 USD millionWashington County: 170.1 USD millionWayne County: 215.5 USD millionWebster County: 136.2 USD millionWhitley County: 622.1 USD millionWolfe County: 58.6 USD millionWoodford County: 513.2 USD million
  • Under 100
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  • 200 to 400
  • 400 to 1,000
  • 1,000 and over
USD million, 2022. 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, 2022

Jefferson County: 33,312.2 USD millionJefferson County33,312.2Fayette County: 12,518.1 USD millionFayette County12,518.1Boone County: 5,939.8 USD millionBoone County5,939.8Kenton County: 5,262.8 USD millionKenton County5,262.8Christian County: 3,693.3 USD millionChristian County3,693.3Warren County: 3,623.5 USD millionWarren County3,623.5Hardin County: 3,030.2 USD millionHardin County3,030.2Daviess County: 2,430.7 USD millionDaviess County2,430.7McCracken County: 2,220.2 USD millionMcCracken County2,220.2Scott County: 1,999.6 USD millionScott County1,999.6Franklin County: 1,911.1 USD millionFranklin County1,911.1Madison County: 1,761.6 USD millionMadison County1,761.6Campbell County: 1,738.7 USD millionCampbell County1,738.7Bullitt County: 1,557.9 USD millionBullitt County1,557.9Boyd County: 1,437.9 USD millionBoyd County1,437.9Pulaski County: 1,222.7 USD millionPulaski County1,222.7Laurel County: 1,221.7 USD millionLaurel County1,221.7Pike County: 1,061.9 USD millionPike County1,061.9Henderson County: 1,003 USD millionHenderson County1,003Oldham County: 978.8 USD millionOldham County978.8Jessamine County: 956.3 USD millionJessamine County956.3Nelson County: 947.5 USD millionNelson County947.5Hopkins County: 913.4 USD millionHopkins County913.4Shelby County: 855 USD millionShelby County855Boyle County: 760.6 USD millionBoyle County760.6Clark County: 740.2 USD millionClark County740.2Barren County: 735.4 USD millionBarren County735.4Calloway County: 699 USD millionCalloway County699Marshall County: 654.6 USD millionMarshall County654.6Whitley County: 622.1 USD millionWhitley County622.1Carroll County: 581.7 USD millionCarroll County581.7Perry County: 574.3 USD millionPerry County574.3Graves County: 559.1 USD millionGraves County559.1Montgomery County: 549.8 USD millionMontgomery County549.8Floyd County: 526.9 USD millionFloyd County526.9Logan County: 513.4 USD millionLogan County513.4Woodford County: 513.2 USD millionWoodford County513.2Taylor County: 500.4 USD millionTaylor County500.4Simpson County: 471.8 USD millionSimpson County471.8Rowan County: 462.2 USD millionRowan County462.2Jefferson County: 33,312.2 USD millionJefferson County33,312.2Fayette County: 12,518.1 USD millionFayette County12,518.1Boone County: 5,939.8 USD millionBoone County5,939.8Kenton County: 5,262.8 USD millionKenton County5,262.8Christian County: 3,693.3 USD millionChristian County3,693.3Warren County: 3,623.5 USD millionWarren County3,623.5Hardin County: 3,030.2 USD millionHardin County3,030.2Daviess County: 2,430.7 USD millionDaviess County2,430.7McCracken County: 2,220.2 USD millionMcCracken County2,220.2Scott County: 1,999.6 USD millionScott County1,999.6Franklin County: 1,911.1 USD millionFranklin County1,911.1Madison County: 1,761.6 USD millionMadison County1,761.6Campbell County: 1,738.7 USD millionCampbell County1,738.7Bullitt County: 1,557.9 USD millionBullitt County1,557.9Boyd County: 1,437.9 USD millionBoyd County1,437.9Pulaski County: 1,222.7 USD millionPulaski County1,222.7Laurel County: 1,221.7 USD millionLaurel County1,221.7Pike County: 1,061.9 USD millionPike County1,061.9Henderson County: 1,003 USD millionHenderson County1,003Oldham County: 978.8 USD millionOldham County978.8Jessamine County: 956.3 USD millionJessamine County956.3Nelson County: 947.5 USD millionNelson County947.5Hopkins County: 913.4 USD millionHopkins County913.4Shelby County: 855 USD millionShelby County855Boyle County: 760.6 USD millionBoyle County760.6Clark County: 740.2 USD millionClark County740.2Barren County: 735.4 USD millionBarren County735.4Calloway County: 699 USD millionCalloway County699Marshall County: 654.6 USD millionMarshall County654.6Whitley County: 622.1 USD millionWhitley County622.1Carroll County: 581.7 USD millionCarroll County581.7Perry County: 574.3 USD millionPerry County574.3Graves County: 559.1 USD millionGraves County559.1Montgomery County: 549.8 USD millionMontgomery County549.8Floyd County: 526.9 USD millionFloyd County526.9Logan County: 513.4 USD millionLogan County513.4Woodford County: 513.2 USD millionWoodford County513.2Taylor County: 500.4 USD millionTaylor County500.4Simpson County: 471.8 USD millionSimpson County471.8Rowan County: 462.2 USD millionRowan County462.2
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

RankCounties2022
USD million
Change on 2021
1Jefferson County33,312.2+7.9%
2Fayette County12,518.1+10.4%
3Boone County5,939.8+7.6%
4Kenton County5,262.8+8.3%
5Christian County3,693.3+5.4%
6Warren County3,623.5+12.3%
7Hardin County3,030.2+7.3%
8Daviess County2,430.7+5.9%
9McCracken County2,220.2+9.8%
10Scott County1,999.6+11.8%
11Franklin County1,911.1+14.2%
12Madison County1,761.6+10.1%
13Campbell County1,738.7+10.9%
14Bullitt County1,557.9+19.3%
15Boyd County1,437.9+7.8%
16Pulaski County1,222.7+8.9%
17Laurel County1,221.7+6.7%
18Pike County1,061.9+8.8%
19Henderson County1,003+9.5%
20Oldham County978.8+9.1%
21Jessamine County956.3+12.2%
22Nelson County947.5+12.3%
23Hopkins County913.4+12.5%
24Shelby County855+7.8%
25Boyle County760.6+12.5%
26Clark County740.2+9%
27Barren County735.4+9.6%
28Calloway County699+7%
29Marshall County654.6+10.5%
30Whitley County622.1+11.2%
31Carroll County581.7+21.1%
32Perry County574.3+10.7%
33Graves County559.1+7.4%
34Montgomery County549.8+15.6%
35Floyd County526.9+10.8%
36Logan County513.4+4.9%
37Woodford County513.2+13.2%
38Taylor County500.4+5.8%
39Simpson County471.8+11.4%
40Rowan County462.2+9.8%
41Marion County424.9+10.7%
42Mason County403.9+5.7%
43Bourbon County397.3+10.8%
44Muhlenberg County388.6+11%
45Mercer County382.8+12.4%
46Greenup County360+8.5%
47Bell County343.2+6%
48Knox County330.9+9%
49Grayson County328.2+6.8%
50Hancock County319.9+6.2%
51Ohio County315.7+11.3%
52Union County282.2+7.6%
53Meade County275.9+31.1%
54Grant County273.2+4.7%
55Harlan County270.5+9.4%
56Harrison County263.7+7.2%
57Russell County252.6+11.3%
58Hart County246.8+10.7%
59Carter County241.7+9.5%
60Anderson County238.2+12.6%
61Johnson County226.1+9%
62Allen County222.1+9.2%
63Caldwell County221+12.9%
64Wayne County215.5+5.2%
65Adair County198.3+8%
66Letcher County193.7+7.9%
67Clay County183.7+3.9%
68Lincoln County180.9+6.8%
69Lawrence County180.6+16.6%
70Gallatin County178.8+12%
71Casey County170.4+6.6%
72Washington County170.1+6.1%
73Breckinridge County168+7.2%
74Rockcastle County163.5+10.8%
75Livingston County159.7+6.4%
76Fleming County158.4+10.6%
77Monroe County149.2+11.4%
78Clinton County141.8+1.9%
79Henry County136.5+7.8%
80Webster County136.2+2.8%
81Morgan County135.1+14.3%
82McCreary County129.6+1.1%
83Todd County129.4+16.6%
84Butler County126.9+5.9%
85Trigg County123.9+11.3%
86Pendleton County119.1+10%
87Garrard County117.8+21.6%
88Powell County116.5+9.5%
89Larue County116.3+3.4%
90Breathitt County112.2+10.5%
91Ballard County110.7+10%
92Lyon County109.5+11.2%
93Estill County108.4+6.6%
94Fulton County100.7+14.4%
95Cumberland County99.9+14.3%
96Spencer County99.8+9.2%
97Bath County98.1+11.3%
98Martin County96.6+2.1%
99Metcalfe County92.2+7.4%
100Knott County86.5+1.7%
101Lewis County84.5+6.3%
102Crittenden County79.7+9.4%
103Green County78.6+10.4%
104Lee County73.6+9.2%
105Magoffin County73.5+5.9%
106Owen County73+13.4%
107McLean County72.7+7.1%
108Leslie County70.8+8.5%
109Jackson County70.3+9.2%
110Edmonson County69.3+8%
111Bracken County69+9.8%
112Trimble County65.9-4%
113Wolfe County58.6+2.8%
114Carlisle County47.6+8%
115Menifee County40+5.1%
116Nicholas County36.8+6.7%
117Elliott County36.5+16%
118Hickman County36+11.2%
119Owsley County26.5-0.4%
120Robertson County12.6+7.8%

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, 2022) [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, 2022. 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=2022. 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, 2022. 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=2022.

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, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/CAINC4.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_counties_in_kentucky_by_2022,
  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, 2022}},
  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=2022. 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, 2022
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=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/wages-and-salaries/kentucky-counties?period=2022.
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  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest wages and salaries paid?

Jefferson County, with $33.31 billion in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Which county has the lowest wages and salaries paid?

Robertson County, with $12.57 million in 2022.

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