How Affordable Is Kentucky, Really?

What it costs to live here, and how good a place it is to live, in plain numbers.

Best place to live rank

#19

19th out of 50 states overall.

Above average for overall quality of life.

How we rank states ›

Cost to live here

#7

7th cheapest state, about 16% below average.

To live the way $75,000 affords in an average state, you would need about $62,700 here.

How we measure cost ›

Kentucky ranks 19th of 50 states for overall quality of life and 7th for affordability. It does best on cost, climate, and safety, and struggles most with dog friendly, economy, and healthcare. A typical household earns about $60,800 a year, and the cost of living runs about 16% below average.

Why Kentucky ranks #19 for living

Our Best Life Rank scores every state on the things that shape daily life, from cost and climate to schools and safety. Here is how Kentucky scores on each, best to worst.

Cost of living
#7 of 50
Climate
#14 of 50
Safety
#19 of 50
Green space
#30 of 50
Education
#33 of 50
Walkability
#33 of 50
Air quality
#38 of 50
Dog friendly
#38 of 50
Economy
#39 of 50
Healthcare
#43 of 50

Each factor is ranked 1 (best) to 50 (worst) across all states. Green is strong, yellow is middling, red is weak.

Kentucky at a glance

Typical household income

$60,800

44th highest

Typical home price

$263,000

39th highest

Overall cost of living

16% below average

7th cheapest

Total taxes on a typical household

About 7%

33rd highest income tax

Typical commute

About 24 min

one way

Taxes in Kentucky

See your real Kentucky take-home pay

Enter your salary and get your actual paycheck after Kentucky taxes.

Calculate my take-home pay ›
Sources: Cost and income from the U.S. Census and Bureau of Labor Statistics. Tax rates from the Tax Foundation. Best Life Rank factors from the Commonwealth Fund, NAEP, FBI, EPA, and NOAA. Cost measured by the BLISS Score, v1.3 method. Updated 2026.