Carter County, KY

County

Add Comparison

2024 Population

26,341

US Senator

Mitch McConnell

Republican Party

US Senator

Rand Paul

Republican Party

2024 Median Age

41.4

0.957% 1-year decrease

2024 Poverty Rate

19.2%

1.98% 1-year decrease

2024 Median Household Income

$51,235

1.68% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$132,800

5.31% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

9,722

0.786% 1-year decline

About

None of the households in Carter County, KY reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

99.1% of the residents in Carter County, KY are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Carter County, KY are Kentucky Christian University (99 degrees awarded in 2023).

In 2024, the median property value in Carter County, KY was $132,800, and the homeownership rate was 80%.

Most people in Carter County, KY drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 30.4 minutes. The average car ownership in Carter County, KY was 2 cars per household.

Carter County, KY borders Boyd County, KY, Elliott County, KY, Greenup County, KY, Lawrence County, KY, Lewis County, KY, and Rowan County, KY.

United States Kentucky

Population & Diversity

Carter County, KY is home to a population of 26.3k people, from which 99.1% are citizens. As of 2024, 1.08% of Carter County, KY residents were born outside of the country (284 people).

In 2024, there were 48.2 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (25.1k people) in Carter County, KY than any other race or ethnicity. There were 520 Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) and 351 Two Races Including Other (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

99.1%

2024 Citizenship

99.3%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 99.1% of Carter County, KY residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Carter County, KY was 99.3%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Carter County, KY compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Carter County, KY

White (Non-Hispanic)
25.1k ± 218
Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic)
520 ± 126
Two Races Including Other (Non-Hispanic)
351 ± 216

0.862%

Hispanic Population

227 people

0.862% of the people in Carter County, KY are hispanic (227 people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Carter County, KY as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the County level, so we are showing data for Kentucky.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
34,091 ± 4,516 people
Cuba
20,475 ± 3,505 people
India
12,629 ± 2,755 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Kentucky was Mexico, the natal country of 34,091 Kentucky residents, followed by Cuba with 20,475 and India with 12,629.

Foreign-Born Population

1.08%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

284 people

0.947%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

251 people

As of 2024, 1.08% of Carter County, KY residents (284 people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Carter County, KY was 0.947%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Carter County, KY compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
670 ± 194
Gulf War (2001-)
269 ± 116
Gulf War (1990s)
217 ± 121

Carter County, KY has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.49 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Carter County, KY.

Economy

The economy of Carter County, KY employs 9.72k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Carter County, KY were Health Care & Social Assistance (1,708 people), Educational Services (1,130 people), and Manufacturing (1,112 people), and the highest paying industries were Information ($89,643), Utilities ($85,017), and Administrative & Support & Waste Management Services ($79,676).

Employment

Occupations

9.72k

2024 Value

± 767

−0.786%

1 Year decline

± 11.2%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Carter County, KY declined at a rate of −0.786%, from 9.8k employees to 9.72k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Carter County, KY, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (1,060 people), Production Occupations (1,018 people), and Construction & Extraction Occupations (769 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Carter County, KY.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Kentucky.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Kentucky (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

Industries

Employment by Industries

9.72k

2024 Value

± 767

−0.786%

1 Year decline

± 11.2%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Carter County, KY declined at a rate of −0.786%, from 9.8k employees to 9.72k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Carter County, KY, are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,708 people), Educational Services (1,130 people), and Manufacturing (1,112 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Carter County, KY, though some of these residents may live in Carter County, KY and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$47,862

Median earning men ± $4,929

$29,873

Median earning women ± $2,791

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Information ($88,679), Wholesale Trade ($81,346), and Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($78,657).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Information ($125,912), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($69,388), and Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($53,250).

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Kentucky.

Y-Axis

2.51%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 1.98M people employed in Kentucky. This represents a 2.51% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 14.4%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in Kentucky.

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

36
Retail Trade
36
Retail Trade
34
Other Services (except Public Administration)

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$40.1k
Manufacturing
$25k
Retail Trade
$23.8k
Health Care and Social Assistance

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Kentucky went to Donald J. Trump with 64.5% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (33.9%), followed by Robert Kennedy (0.808%).

Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul are the senators currently representing the state of Kentucky. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Kentucky is currently represented by 6 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Presidential Popular Vote Over Time

Voting results are not available for Carter County, KY. Showing the available data for Kentucky.

2024 Election Results

Donald J. Trump (64.5%)
Republican Party
Kamala Harris (33.9%)
Democratic Party
Robert Kennedy (0.808%)
Independent Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Kentucky went to Donald J. Trump with 64.5% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (33.9%), followed by Robert Kennedy (0.808%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Kentucky for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

Senator Elections

US Senators from Kentucky

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Kentucky.

Mitch McConnell

Senator from Kentucky

Assumed office on January 3, 1985

Rand Paul

Senator from Kentucky

Assumed office on January 3, 2011

Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul are the senators currently representing Kentucky.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in Kentucky over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Education

In 2023, universities in Carter County, KY awarded 99 degrees. The student population of Carter County, KY in 2023 is skewed towards men, with 340 male students and 201 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Carter County, KY are White (76 and 79.2%), Black or African American (9 and 9.38%), Hispanic or Latino (6 and 6.25%), and Two or More Races (3 and 3.13%).

The largest universities in Carter County, KY by number of degrees awarded are Kentucky Christian University (99 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Carter County, KY are General Business Administration & Management (25 and 25.3%), Nursing Administration (20 and 20.2%), and Registered Nursing (9 and 9.09%).

The median tuition cost in Carter County, KY for private four year colleges is $24,400.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University

Measure

In 2023 in Carter County, KY, the percentage of applicants admitted was 62.4%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 35.6%. The number of students enrolled in 2023 was 541 (62.8% men and 37.2% women).

The line chart shows the evolution of the percentage of applicants admitted, admitted who enrolled or the number of students enrolled according to the option selected in the upper button.

Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2023 there were 541 students enrolled in Carter County, KY, 62.8% men and 37.2% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 332 records, of which 44.9% were women and 55.1% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Counseling Psychology
8 degrees awarded
General Business Administration & Management
25 degrees awarded
Registered Nursing
9 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Bachelors Degree recipients in Carter County, KY was Counseling Psychology with 8 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Bachelors Degree from schools in Carter County, KY according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Kentucky Christian University

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

99 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Kentucky Christian University with 99 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

University

In 2023, 49 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Carter County, KY, which is 0.98 times less than the 50 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 76 degrees mean that there were 8.44 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 9 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Universities

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($24,400) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($600) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($1,400) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Carter County, KY was $132,800 in 2024, which is 0.399 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $126,100 to $132,800, a 5.31% increase. The homeownership rate in Carter County, KY is 80%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Carter County, KY have an average commute time of 30.4 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Carter County, KY is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

In 2025, 11.5% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Carter County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator grew 0.145%.

Housing

Property

$132,800

Median Property Value 2024

±$16,490

$8,639

Median Property Taxes

±$656

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Carter County, KY the largest share of households pay taxes in the < $800 range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Carter County, KY compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

80%

Homeownership

2024

68.7%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 80% of the housing units in Carter County, KY were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 78.4%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Carter County, KY compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$51,235

Median Household Income

± $4,124

10.8k

Number of Households

± 822

In 2024, the median household income of the 10.8k households in Carter County, KY grew to $51,235 from the previous year's value of $50,389.

The following chart displays the households in Carter County, KY distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the < $10k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Carter County, KY is from Kentucky.

0.449

2023 Wage GINI in Kentucky

0.452

2022 Wage GINI in Kentucky

In 2023, the income inequality in Kentucky was 0.449 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.729% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Kentucky was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Kentucky in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in Kentucky across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (80.6%)
Carpooled (11.3%)
Worked At Home (3.6%)

In 2024, 80.6% of workers in Carter County, KY drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (11.3%) and those who worked at home (3.6%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

30.4 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Carter County, KY have a longer commute time (30.4 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 5.25% of the workforce in Carter County, KY have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Carter County, KY compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Carter County, KY distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Carter County, KY have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2025, 11.5% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Carter County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator grew 0.145%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the population living with severe housing problems.

Poverty & Diversity

19.2% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Carter County, KY (4.93k out of 25.7k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 55 - 64, followed by Females 45 - 54 and then Females 25 - 34.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Carter County, KY is White, followed by Two Or More and Hispanic.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Children in Poverty

In 2025, 24.4% of the children was living in poverty in Carter County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 9.8%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the children living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Security

Crimes & Accidents

Indicator

In 2022, the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population was 53.6 in Carter County, KY. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator declined 11.3 per 100,000 population.

The graph shows the trend in the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population.

Health

92.9% of the population of Carter County, KY has health coverage, with 38% on employee plans, 23.5% on Medicaid, 16.2% on Medicare, 13.5% on non-group plans, and 1.59% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Carter County, KY see 5,282 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (5,282 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 6599 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 549 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.2% were men and 50.8% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

5,282 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Carter County, KY

Primary care physicians in Carter County, KY see an average of 5,282 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (5,282 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Carter County, KY in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 24% under 18 years, 18.5% between 18 and 34 years, 37.8% between 35 and 64 years, and 19.8% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.2% were men and 50.8% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

7.14%

Uninsured

38%

Employer Coverage

23.5%

Medicaid

16.2%

Medicare

13.5%

Non-Group

1.59%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Carter County, KY declined by 14.6% from 8.35% to 7.14%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Carter County, KY changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Health Indicators

Health Outcomes

Indicator

In 2025, the number of deaths among residents under age 18 per 100,000 population was 45.7 in Carter County, KY.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Carter County, KY.

Health Behaviors

Indicator

In 2025, the percentage of the adult population (age 18 and older) that reports a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 (age-adjusted) was 42.9% in Carter County, KY.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Carter County, KY.