County facts · Population · October 25, 2026

Kentucky Population by County, 2025 Census Estimates

Kentucky population by county: July 2025 Census estimates for all 120 counties, change since 2020, density, and a link to each official parcel map.

Looking for Kentucky population by county? The Census Bureau estimates that Kentucky had 4,606,864 residents on July 1, 2025, spread across 120 counties. Jefferson County is the most populous, with 795,222 people (17% of the state), and Robertson County is the least populous, with 2,325.

The table below lists every county with its 2025 estimate, its April 2020 starting point, the change, people per square mile, and a link to its official parcel viewer.

Kentucky population at a glance

• Counties: 120
• Statewide, July 1, 2025: 4,606,864 (April 1, 2020 estimates base: 4,506,287; change +100,577, +2.2%)
• Most populous: Jefferson County (795,222); least populous: Robertson County (2,325)
• Median county: about 19,790 residents (half of the counties are smaller)
• The 5 largest counties hold 35% of all Kentucky residents
• Counties with 1,000,000+ residents: 0 · 100,000+: 8 · under 10,000: 22
• Statewide density: about 117 people per square mile of land

Kentucky population by county, July 2025 (all 120)

Percent change runs from the April 1, 2020 estimates base to July 1, 2025. People per square mile is the July 2025 estimate divided by the county's land area in the Census Bureau's 2020 Gazetteer file, so lakes and bays are left out.

How Kentucky's population is spread out

Grouping the counties by size shows how concentrated the state is:

2 counties with at least 250,000 residents hold 24% of the state's population.

Most and least densely populated

The most crowded counties by people per square mile of land:

1. Jefferson County: 2,088 per sq mi (795,222 people on 381 sq mi)
2. Fayette County: 1,163 per sq mi (329,751 people on 284 sq mi)
3. Kenton County: 1,097 per sq mi (175,779 people on 160 sq mi)
4. Campbell County: 631 per sq mi (95,441 people on 151 sq mi)
5. Boone County: 590 per sq mi (145,316 people on 246 sq mi)

The most thinly settled:

1. Hickman County: 18 per sq mi (4,372 people on 242 sq mi)
2. Cumberland County: 20 per sq mi (5,992 people on 305 sq mi)
3. Owsley County: 20 per sq mi (3,932 people on 197 sq mi)
4. Robertson County: 23 per sq mi (2,325 people on 100 sq mi)
5. Leslie County: 24 per sq mi (9,627 people on 401 sq mi)

About these numbers

• They are estimates. Between censuses the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program updates county totals each year from births, deaths and migration records. The next full count is the 2030 census.
• The base is April 1, 2020. The estimates start from an April 1, 2020 "estimates base" built from the 2020 census, which is why it is slightly different from the published census count.
• Each new release revises the past. A newer vintage can change earlier years as well, so compare numbers from the same release, as this page does.
• Statewide total. The counties add up exactly to the statewide figure of 4,606,864 in the same file.

Using population numbers in a land search

• Big counties, busy offices. In the most populous counties, parcel maps and deed records are usually online and searchable, but recording and permit offices are busier. Allow for that if you are on a deadline.
• Small counties, fewer sales. In counties with only a few thousand people, land changes hands less often, so there are fewer recent sales to compare a price with. Recorded deeds and the local assessor's sales records are the best source.
• Density hints at lot size. A low people-per-square-mile figure usually means farms, ranches and timber tracts; a high one means subdivided lots. The parcel viewer shows the actual parcel lines.
• Check the official map. Use the parcel viewer link in the table for boundaries, parcel numbers and owner names, then confirm anything important with the local assessor and the office that records deeds.

Related guides

• Fastest growing counties in Kentucky
• Largest counties in Kentucky
• Kentucky county GIS websites by viewer
• Kentucky landowner maps for hunting
• Kentucky PVA maps and parcel search
• Most populous counties in the US
• Where people are moving in the US

More: All Kentucky counties on Platbookmapper

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, county totals, Vintage 2025 (April 1, 2020 estimates base and July 1, 2020–2025 estimates, with components of change). Statewide totals are the sum of the counties and match the file's state row.
• U.S. Census Bureau Gazetteer files, 2020 county land and water area (for people per square mile).
• Platbookmapper county GIS directory (live data file behind our county pages, pulled October 25, 2026) for each official parcel viewer.