county

Garrard County, KY

Demographic and economic profile of Garrard County, KY, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Garrard County is a small rural Kentucky county with a population of 17,346 that has remained essentially flat over five years (+0.1%), pointing to a stable but slow-growth local economy with a GDP per capita of $17,452 and median household income of $63,087. The labor force is limited—56.1% participation, 6.1% unemployment, and only 19.1% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher—with median worker earnings of $40,450 suggesting a cost-competitive but modestly skilled workforce. Housing costs are low, with a median home value of $186,800 and median gross rent of $793/month, and the 79.9% homeownership rate reflects a predominantly settled, owner-occupant population with a median age of 43.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

17,346

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$63,087

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

43.0 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+0.1% since 2018

Garrard County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone16,144 (91.9%)
  • Black or African American Alone415 (2.4%)
  • Some Other Race Alone336 (1.9%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races335 (1.9%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race299 (1.7%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone30 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish301
  2. 2.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic140
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic99
  4. 4.Other Indo-European53
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island12

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

21.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

59.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

18.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.0%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,150

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$17,452

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$30,619

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

6.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

17.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,921
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)1,128
  3. 3.Construction (Group)853
  4. 4.Retail Trade (Group)752
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services632

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,086
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations1,571
  3. 3.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,483
  4. 4.Service Occupations1,261
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations986

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Construction (LQ 1.65×)841
  2. 2.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.55×)264
  3. 3.Manufacturing (LQ 1.41×)1,033
  4. 4.Other Services (LQ 1.39×)483
  5. 5.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 1.33×)156

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$186,800

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$793/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

79.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999749 (14.0%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999732 (13.7%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999583 (10.9%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999436 (8.2%)
  • $175,000 to $199,999406 (7.6%)
  • $400,000 to $499,999398 (7.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

19.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

85.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

56.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$40,450

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

33.1 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

4.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone5,573 (76.7%)
  • Worked At Home802 (11.0%)
  • Carpooled755 (10.4%)
  • Public Transit65 (0.9%)
  • Other48 (0.7%)
  • Walked23 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Similar Locations

5 counties with comparable population, workforce, income, education, and cost of living. Click any to compare.

More on FDI Connect

Compare Garrard County against other US geographies, save it to your shortlist, see active property listings on the interactive map, and unlock the full demographic dashboard.

Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.