Kentucky Cities by Population (2023)

The southeastern state of Kentucky is ranked 26th among all states in the United States in terms of population, with a total estimated population of 4.4 million per 2017 estimates. Louisville and the Jefferson County metro government balance is the most populated city in the state, with a population of 615,366. The second most-populous city and the only other city with a population that exceeds 100,000 is the Lexington-Fayette urban county with a total population count of 314,488. There is a total of 36 cities with populations that land between 10,000 and 100,000. Frankfort, the state’s capital, is ranked 13 among all other cities by population, with just 27,830 residents.

There is a total of 419 cities in the entire state. These cities are divided into two classes based on their type of government and not their population, as is seen in many other U.S. states. First class cities hold a mayor-alderman style of government, while home rule class use any other form of government. This system was changed in 2015 from one that divided cities across six classes based on their population. There are multiple cities throughout Kentucky that have populations that fall under 1,000 people, while there are a handful that have even lower populations that don’t even hit 100. The smallest city per estimates in 2015 is South Park View, which has a population of just seven people.