Nelson County, Kentucky Population 2024

48,101

Nelson County, Kentucky's estimated 2024 population is 48,101 with a growth rate of 0.78% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Nelson County, Kentucky is the 21st largest county in Kentucky. The 2010 population was 43,626 and has seen a growth of 10.26% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change

41 Rows

Year
Population
Growth
Change
202949,9563710.75%
202849,5853710.75%
202749,2143710.76%
202648,8433710.77%
202548,4723710.77%
202448,1013710.78%
202347,7303710.78%
202247,3592320.49%
202147,1273480.74%
202046,7795581.21%
201946,2214400.96%
201845,7811750.38%
201745,606890.2%
201645,5173980.88%
201545,1192580.58%
201444,8613200.72%
201344,5411400.32%
201244,4013410.77%
201144,0604340.99%
201043,62600%
199029,7102,1267.71%
198027,5844,10717.49%
197023,4771,3095.9%
196022,1682,64713.56%
195019,5211,5178.43%
194018,0041,4538.78%
193016,5514142.57%
192016,137-693-4.12%
191016,8302431.47%
190016,5871701.04%
189016,417-192-1.16%
188016,6091,80512.19%
187014,804-995-6.3%
186015,7991,0106.83%
185014,7891,1528.45%
184013,637-1,295-8.67%
183014,932-1,341-8.24%
182016,2732,19515.59%
181014,0784,21242.69%
18009,866-1,449-12.81%
179011,315-38,641-77.35%
2024 Growth Rate
0.78% (371)
County Website
Nelson County
County Seat
Bardstown
2020 Population
46,779
Area
419 mi²
Density
115 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
2.83% (1,322)
Founded
November 29, 1784

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White42,60891.08%
Black or African American2,2354.78%
Two or more races1,4012.99%
Asian2450.52%
Other race2390.51%
Native American510.11%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander00%

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Asian

Other race

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Nelson County, Kentucky Population by Race

Nelson County, Kentucky Population Pyramid 2024

Nelson County, Kentucky Median Age

39.9

Total

38.8

Male

41.2

Female

Nelson County, Kentucky Adults

There are 35,880 adults, (7,780 of whom are seniors) in Nelson County, Kentucky.

Nelson County, Kentucky Age Dependency

66.5

Age Dependency Ratio

27.7

Old Age Dependency Ratio

38.8

Child Dependency Ratio

Nelson County, Kentucky Sex Ratio

Female23,41550.05%
Male23,36449.95%

Nelson County, Kentucky Population by Age

Nelson County, Kentucky Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All18,4572.5176.523.5
Married9,7213.0886.113.9
Non Family5,7211.267.132.9
Female2,1303.2158.641.4
Male8852.9274.525.5

3

Average Family Size

2.51

Average Household Size

76.5%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Nelson County, Kentucky Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade1,7815.53%
Associates Degree3,93312.2%
Bachelors Degree4,40713.67%
Graduate Degree2,8558.86%
High School Graduate11,80736.63%
Less Than 9th Grade7252.25%
Some College6,72320.86%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Nelson County, Kentucky Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Nelson County, Kentucky Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
White29,61127,4676,628
Black1,5371,311282
Hispanic525453188
2+ Races477420122
Other Race21615043
Asian151151111
Native American39320

The highest rate of high school graduation is among asian people with a rate of 100%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 73.51%.

Nelson County, Kentucky Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$58,920$74,916$55,139
Graduate Degree$68,174$73,030$66,958
High School Graduate$37,168$46,241$27,988
Less Than 9th Grade$22,500$27,092$13,836
Overall$44,245$52,621$37,514
Some College$43,560$58,750$36,167

$44,245

Average Earnings

$52,621

Average Male

$37,514

Average Female

Nelson County, Kentucky Earnings by Educational Attainment

Nelson County, Kentucky Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Nelson County, Kentucky Language

97.28% of Nelson County, Kentucky residents speak only English, while 2.72% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 1.37% of the population.

Nelson County, Kentucky Language

Nelson County, Kentucky Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
White41,6173,5398.5%
Hispanic1,04421220.31%
Multiple1,40120314.49%
Black2,2241577.06%
Native514486.27%
Asian2453815.51%
Other23941.67%

8.77%

Overall Poverty Rate

7.96%

Male Poverty Rate

9.56%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Nelson County, Kentucky

The race most likely to be in poverty in Nelson County, Kentucky is Native, with 86.27% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Nelson County, Kentucky is Other, with 1.67% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 2.22%. Among those working part-time, it was 9.82%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 13.93%.

Nelson County, Kentucky Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade24.75%
High School8.64%
Some College5.66%
Bachelors or Greater3.05%

Nelson County, Kentucky Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed25.42%
Male Unemployed17.05%
Female Employed4.69%
Male Employed3.49%

Nelson County, Kentucky Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Nelson County, Kentucky Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$81,152$101,838
Households$66,212$86,041
Married Families$90,467$115,813
Non Families$34,533$46,813

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Nelson County, Kentucky Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

53.4%

Overall Marriage Rate

53.9%

Male Marriage Rate

52.9%

Female Marriage Rate

Nelson County, Kentucky Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Nelson County, Kentucky Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 35-44.

Nelson County, Kentucky Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Nelson County, Kentucky Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

3,220

Number of Veterans

2,967

Male Veterans

253

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Vietnam1,131
First Gulf War801
Second Gulf War684
Korea167
World War II22

Nelson County, Kentucky Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
35 to 54974
65 to 74805
75+791
55 to 64514
18 to 34136

Nelson County, Kentucky Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White2,9710.09008216852126982
Black1190.06749858196256381
Hispanic1170.172821270310192
2+ Races870.12965722801788376
Other Race430.19907407407407407

Nelson County, Kentucky Veterans by Race

Nelson County, Kentucky Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

3.94%

Veteran Poverty Rate

34.59%

Veteran Disability Rate

Nelson County, Kentucky Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

62.5%

Labor Force Participation

60.5%

Employment Rate

2.9%

Unemployment Rate

Nelson County, Kentucky Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Nelson County, Kentucky Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Nelson County, Kentucky Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

78.79%

Born in Nelson County, Kentucky

98.1%

Native Born

1.9%

Foreign Born

1.06%

Non Citizen

0.83%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

98.1% of Nelson County, Kentucky residents were born in the United States, with 78.79% having been born in Kentucky. 1.06% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Nelson County, Kentucky Place of Birth

Sources