Harlan County, KY

County

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2024 Population

25,772

US Senator

Mitch McConnell

Republican Party

US Senator

Rand Paul

Republican Party

2024 Median Age

40.9

0.728% 1-year decrease

2024 Poverty Rate

27.4%

0.503% 1-year increase

2024 Median Household Income

$41,693

12.1% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$73,700

0.821% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

7,668

3.45% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Harlan 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.

99.9% of the residents in Harlan County, KY are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Harlan County, KY are Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College (1,218 degrees awarded in 2023).

In 2024, the median property value in Harlan County, KY was $73,700, and the homeownership rate was 71.6%.

Most people in Harlan County, KY drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 23.8 minutes. The average car ownership in Harlan County, KY was 2 cars per household.

Harlan County, KY borders Bell County, KY, Leslie County, KY, Letcher County, KY, Perry County, KY, Lee County, VA, and Wise County, VA.

United States Kentucky

Population & Diversity

Harlan County, KY is home to a population of 25.8k people, from which 99.9% are citizens. As of 2024, 0.384% of Harlan County, KY residents were born outside of the country (99 people).

In 2024, there were 36.7 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (24.2k people) in Harlan County, KY than any other race or ethnicity. There were 659 Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) and 328 Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

99.9%

2024 Citizenship

99.9%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 99.9% of Harlan County, KY residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Harlan County, KY was 99.9%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

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

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Harlan County, KY

White (Non-Hispanic)
24.2k ± 145
Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic)
659 ± 105
Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
328 ± 90

0.524%

Hispanic Population

135 people

0.524% of the people in Harlan County, KY are hispanic (135 people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Harlan 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

0.384%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

99 people

0.225%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

59 people

As of 2024, 0.384% of Harlan County, KY residents (99 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 Harlan County, KY was 0.225%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
465 ± 147
Gulf War (2001-)
360 ± 149
Gulf War (1990s)
166 ± 83

Harlan County, KY has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.29 times greater than any other conflict.

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

Economy

The economy of Harlan County, KY employs 7.67k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Harlan County, KY were Health Care & Social Assistance (1,649 people), Retail Trade (1,153 people), and Educational Services (953 people), and the highest paying industries were Information ($79,783), Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($71,722), and Finance & Insurance ($61,250).

Employment

Occupations

7.67k

2024 Value

± 668

3.45%

1 Year growth

± 11.5%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Harlan County, KY grew at a rate of 3.45%, from 7.41k employees to 7.67k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Harlan County, KY, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (1,074 people), Sales & Related Occupations (804 people), and Education Instruction, & Library Occupations (739 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Harlan 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

7.67k

2024 Value

± 668

3.45%

1 Year growth

± 11.5%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Harlan County, KY grew at a rate of 3.45%, from 7.41k employees to 7.67k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Harlan County, KY, are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,649 people), Retail Trade (1,153 people), and Educational Services (953 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Harlan County, KY, though some of these residents may live in Harlan County, KY and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$42,409

Median earning men ± $4,280

$33,931

Median earning women ± $5,311

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Information ($90,156), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($70,000), and Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($58,333).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance ($41,073), Construction ($36,468), and Public Administration ($36,455).

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

33
Other Services (except Public Administration)
33
Retail Trade
28
Retail Trade

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

$63.9k
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction
$53.4k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$24.6k
Retail Trade

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 Harlan 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 Harlan County, KY awarded 1,218 degrees. The student population of Harlan County, KY in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 1,279 male students and 1,865 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Harlan County, KY are White (1,111 and 91.2%), Unknown (68 and 5.58%), Black or African American (13 and 1.07%), and Hispanic or Latino (11 and 0.903%).

The largest universities in Harlan County, KY by number of degrees awarded are Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College (1,218 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Harlan County, KY are Liberal Arts & Sciences (196 and 16.1%), Licensed Practical & Vocational Nurse Training (177 and 14.5%), and Medical Assistant (136 and 11.2%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 3,144 students enrolled in Harlan County, KY, 40.7% men and 59.3% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 2,868 records, of which 60.5% were women and 39.5% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Licensed Practical & Vocational Nurse Training
165 degrees awarded
Automobile Mechanics Technology
104 degrees awarded
Welding Technology
70 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Certificate of less than 1 academic year recipients in Harlan County, KY was Licensed Practical & Vocational Nurse Training with 165 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Certificate of less than 1 academic year from schools in Harlan County, KY according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

1,218 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College with 1,218 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

In 2023, 623 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Harlan County, KY, which is 1.05 times more than the 595 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 1,111 degrees mean that there were 16.3 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Unknown, with 68 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

Public, 2-year ($4,464) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($192) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($1,152) 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 Harlan County, KY was $73,700 in 2024, which is 0.222 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $73,100 to $73,700, a 0.821% increase. The homeownership rate in Harlan County, KY is 71.6%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Harlan County, KY have an average commute time of 23.8 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Harlan County, KY is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

In 2025, 15% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Harlan County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator grew 1.24%.

Housing

Property

$73,700

Median Property Value 2024

±$5,865

$7,680

Median Property Taxes

±$611

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 Harlan County, KY the largest share of households pay taxes in the < $800 range.

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

Rent vs Own

71.6%

Homeownership

2024

63%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 71.6% of the housing units in Harlan County, KY were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 70.8%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Harlan 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.

$41,693

Median Household Income

± $4,836

10.7k

Number of Households

± 739

In 2024, the median household income of the 10.7k households in Harlan County, KY grew to $41,693 from the previous year's value of $37,198.

The following chart displays the households in Harlan 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 Harlan 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 (76.8%)
Carpooled (14.9%)
Worked At Home (5.84%)

In 2024, 76.8% of workers in Harlan County, KY drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (14.9%) and those who worked at home (5.84%).

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

23.8 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Harlan County, KY have a shorter commute time (23.8 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 3.37% of the workforce in Harlan County, KY have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Harlan 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 Harlan County, KY distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Harlan County, KY have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2025, 15% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Harlan County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator grew 1.24%.

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

Poverty & Diversity

27.4% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Harlan County, KY (6.87k out of 25.1k 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 Males 35 - 44 and then Females 6 - 11.

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

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, 35.1% of the children was living in poverty in Harlan County, KY. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 3.7%.

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 61 in Harlan County, KY. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator declined 45.1 per 100,000 population.

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

Health

95.1% of the population of Harlan County, KY has health coverage, with 24.2% on employee plans, 42.1% on Medicaid, 17.3% on Medicare, 9.33% on non-group plans, and 2.04% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Harlan County, KY see 2,907 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,907 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 3208 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 1688 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.1% were men and 51.9% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

2,907 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Harlan County, KY

Primary care physicians in Harlan County, KY see an average of 2,907 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,907 patients).

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

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 25.1% under 18 years, 17.6% between 18 and 34 years, 38.2% between 35 and 64 years, and 19.2% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.1% were men and 51.9% were women.

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

Uninsured People

4.93%

Uninsured

24.2%

Employer Coverage

42.1%

Medicaid

17.3%

Medicare

9.33%

Non-Group

2.04%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Harlan County, KY grew by 4.94% from 4.7% to 4.93%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Harlan 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 80.8 in Harlan County, KY.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Harlan 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 44.7% in Harlan County, KY.

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