Kentucky
Across all occupations in Kentucky, the median wage is $46,920 a year ($22.56 an hour) and the mean $58,990, May 2025. That median is −8% against the US median of $50,980. BLS counts 2,000,360 jobs in the state. The highest-paying occupation is cardiologists; the largest is laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand.
All occupations: Kentucky vs the United States
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||
| Kentucky | Hourly | $13.45 | $17.02 | $22.56 | $32.10 | $47.30 | $28.36 | 2,000,360 |
| Annual | $27,970 | $35,410 | $46,920 | $66,760 | $98,380 | $58,990 | ||
| United States | Hourly | $15.00 | $18.07 | $24.51 | $38.71 | $61.81 | $33.54 | 155,495,730 |
| Annual | $31,200 | $37,590 | $50,980 | $80,520 | $128,560 | $69,770 | ||
Minimum wage in Kentucky
The wage floor is a separate question from these survey figures. See the Kentucky minimum wage page for the current rate, scheduled increases and tipped rules, verified against the U.S. Department of Labor.
20 highest-paying occupations in Kentucky
| Rank | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiologists | $558,180 | $268.36 | ** |
| 2 | Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $350,950 | * | 6,260 |
| 3 | Anesthesiologists | $347,960 | $167.29 | 1,090 |
| 4 | Neurologists | $338,850 | $162.91 | 230 |
| 5 | Physicians, All Other | $327,390 | $157.40 | 3,340 |
| 6 | Physicians, Pathologists | $324,390 | $155.96 | ** |
| 7 | Obstetricians and Gynecologists | $317,110 | $152.46 | 240 |
| 8 | Radiologists | $279,990 | $134.61 | ** |
| 9 | Family Medicine Physicians | $248,730 | $119.58 | 1,170 |
| 10 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $241,530 | $116.12 | 1,060 |
| 11 | Psychiatrists | $237,770 | $114.31 | 160 |
| 12 | Nurse Anesthetists | $222,520 | $106.98 | 1,640 |
| 13 | Podiatrists | $201,260 | $96.76 | 80 |
| 14 | Dermatologists | $195,830 | $94.15 | ** |
| 15 | Physicists | $180,910 | $86.98 | 50 |
| 16 | Chief Executives | $179,530 | $86.31 | 2,070 |
| 17 | Pediatricians, General | $175,690 | $84.47 | 380 |
| 18 | Emergency Medicine Physicians | $169,390 | $81.44 | 620 |
| 19 | Surgeons, All Other | $162,160 | $77.96 | 440 |
| 20 | Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates | $150,650 | $72.43 | 370 |
Ranked by median; an occupation whose median BLS withholds or top-codes cannot appear here, however well it pays.
20 largest occupations in Kentucky
Occupation groups in Kentucky
Metropolitan areas in Kentucky
9 metropolitan areas touch Kentucky, plus 4 nonmetropolitan areas, with the all-occupations median of each. A linked metropolitan area has its own profile; nonmetropolitan areas appear here only.
| Area | Type | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowling Green, KY | Metropolitan | $45,040 | $21.65 | 82,160 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | Metropolitan | $50,170 | $24.12 | 1,101,030 |
| Clarksville, TN-KY | Metropolitan | $44,860 | $21.57 | 103,220 |
| Elizabethtown, KY | Metropolitan | $46,810 | $22.51 | 51,540 |
| Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | Metropolitan | $44,600 | $21.44 | 140,740 |
| Lexington-Fayette, KY | Metropolitan | $48,620 | $23.38 | 286,910 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | Metropolitan | $48,370 | $23.25 | 685,190 |
| Owensboro, KY | Metropolitan | $44,960 | $21.62 | 49,450 |
| Paducah, KY-IL | Metropolitan | $45,860 | $22.05 | 50,270 |
| West Kentucky nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $43,870 | $21.09 | 128,740 |
| South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $42,150 | $20.26 | 172,150 |
| Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $45,290 | $21.77 | 172,720 |
| East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $39,990 | $19.23 | 91,910 |
Occupation pages for Kentucky
62 occupations have a dedicated Kentucky page with the state's percentiles, its metro table and a comparison with neighbouring states.
- Accountants and Auditors $75,270
- Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics $44,890
- Bartenders $28,780
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks $46,550
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other $74,690
- Carpenters $52,680
- Cashiers $28,590
- Computer and Information Systems Managers $140,360
- Computer User Support Specialists $57,850
- Construction Laborers $45,710
- Cooks, Fast Food $23,500
- Cooks, Restaurant $34,640
- Customer Service Representatives $38,700
- Electricians $59,720
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education $60,610
- Fast Food and Counter Workers $27,130
- Financial Managers $130,650
- First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers $73,490
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers $35,810
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers $63,180
- First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers $72,490
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers $40,080
- First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors $60,090
- Food Preparation Workers $26,850
- General and Operations Managers $79,370
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $56,340
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides $36,440
- Human Resources Specialists $69,010
- Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators $46,630
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $32,320
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand $42,770
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers $36,670
- Lawyers $101,550
- Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses $60,460
- Light Truck Drivers $43,230
- Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $30,880
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General $46,810
- Management Analysts $95,630
- Managers, All Other $122,930
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists $61,480
- Medical Assistants $39,270
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants $38,750
- Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $61,120
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators $47,950
- Nursing Assistants $38,370
- Office Clerks, General $37,870
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers $60,490
- Project Management Specialists $81,700
- Receptionists and Information Clerks $32,940
- Registered Nurses $81,040
- Retail Salespersons $29,650
- Sales Managers $128,650
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel $52,750
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products $64,280
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $61,560
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive $44,200
- Security Guards $35,420
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks $42,830
- Software Developers $109,010
- Stockers and Order Fillers $36,810
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary $30,160
- Waiters and Waitresses $29,660
Take-home pay and benefits calculators for Kentucky
FastCalc, a sister site, has these calculators for Kentucky. Each takes your own figures; this site computes nothing.
Source and notes
Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS Kentucky estimates.
*- Wage estimate not available.
**- Employment estimate not available.
- Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
- Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.
- Jobs per 1,000 is the occupation's employment per 1,000 jobs in Kentucky.