Counties with the highest unemployment in Kentucky

Unemployment rates have continued to rise across U.S. metropolitan areas, stoking concern throughout the nation and guiding the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates.

As of September, unemployment rates had increased from the previous year in 260 out of 389 U.S. metros areas—including 37 of the 51 largest metros, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. In October, these statistics were both lower than in previous months, indicating that the rate cuts may already be helping stabilize unemployment.

To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Kentucky, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in September 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

In October, the health care and government sectors saw employment trend upward, while labor strikes contributed to a decline in manufacturing employment. However, the national unemployment rate still remains relatively low at 4.1% in October, unchanged from the previous month. It remains higher than it has otherwise been since November 2021.

By comparison, unemployment rates surged to 10% in October 2009 during the Great Recession, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the brief COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.

The Federal Reserve has shifted its focus from curbing inflation to unemployment, cutting interest rates to alleviate economic strain and spur job growth. Since last year, unemployment has spiked in half of states—a signal often indicating a looming recession, as Piper Sandler Chief Global Economist Nancy Lazar told Business Insider. In September, South Carolina and Utah saw the biggest unemployment rate increases.

These jobless rates, paired with layoffs among major U.S. employers like Google and Tesla, have sparked concern among Americans. Minus a major economic blow, economists continue to forecast that the U.S. is tracking toward an incremental slowdown in growth known as a “soft landing.” The Fed plans to continue cutting rates to achieve this.

To get a better idea of your community’s current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Kentucky.

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#50. Butler County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,191 people (284 unemployed)

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#49. Breckinridge County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,031 people (445 unemployed)

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#48. Laurel County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 25,381 people (1,393 unemployed)

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#47. Livingston County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,731 people (209 unemployed)

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#46. Morgan County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,667 people (263 unemployed)

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#45. Robertson County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 811 people (46 unemployed)

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#44. Edmonson County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,952 people (280 unemployed)

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#43. Fleming County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,935 people (340 unemployed)

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#42. Union County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,107 people (347 unemployed)

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#41. Christian County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
– Total labor force: 25,278 people (1,432 unemployed)

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#40. Pulaski County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 25,768 people (1,468 unemployed)

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#39. Whitley County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,127 people (825 unemployed)

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#38. Fulton County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,184 people (129 unemployed)

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#37. Estill County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,304 people (311 unemployed)

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#36. Russell County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,598 people (389 unemployed)

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#35. Lincoln County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,414 people (552 unemployed)

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#34. Adair County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.0%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,594 people (455 unemployed)

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#33. Lee County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,268 people (141 unemployed)

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#32. Clinton County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,403 people (212 unemployed)

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#31. Wayne County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,942 people (431 unemployed)

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#30. Rowan County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,595 people (652 unemployed)

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#29. Ohio County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,231 people (578 unemployed)

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#28. Bath County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,681 people (301 unemployed)

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#27. Boyd County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 17,293 people (1,101 unemployed)

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#26. Mason County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,588 people (426 unemployed)

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#25. Bell County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,492 people (550 unemployed)

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#24. Lawrence County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,978 people (397 unemployed)

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#23. Perry County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,092 people (532 unemployed)

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#22. Greenup County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 12,976 people (875 unemployed)

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#21. Wolfe County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,278 people (155 unemployed)

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#20. Menifee County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,369 people (160 unemployed)

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#19. Jackson County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,361 people (296 unemployed)

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#18. Pike County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 19,594 people (1,323 unemployed)

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#17. McCreary County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,758 people (326 unemployed)

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#16. Muhlenberg County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.0%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,161 people (710 unemployed)

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#15. Floyd County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 11,299 people (819 unemployed)

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#14. Owsley County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,151 people (85 unemployed)

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#13. Knox County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,140 people (763 unemployed)

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#12. Johnson County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,931 people (527 unemployed)

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#11. Carter County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,757 people (739 unemployed)

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#10. Lewis County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,413 people (338 unemployed)

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#9. Letcher County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,088 people (470 unemployed)

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#8. Clay County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,261 people (413 unemployed)

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#7. Knott County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,356 people (358 unemployed)

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#6. Elliott County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,920 people (161 unemployed)

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#5. Leslie County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,554 people (214 unemployed)

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#4. Harlan County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.6%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,639 people (574 unemployed)

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#3. Breathitt County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,191 people (290 unemployed)

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#2. Martin County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 10.7%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Up 2.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,243 people (241 unemployed)

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#1. Magoffin County

– September unemployment rate (preliminary): 11.5%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 2.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,379 people (387 unemployed)

This story features data reporting and writing by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.

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