With 23,028 people, Mercer County is a county in Kentucky. About 25% of adults have finished a four-year degree. The foreign-born share is 3%. The median age is 42.9, about 4 years above the US median. 76% of homes are owner-occupied. The typical home is worth $202,300, having more than doubled since 2000.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $64,824, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 42.9
US median: 38.9
Less educated
25% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 31%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Mercer County
What changed most since 1990
White share95.2% → 90.0%(−5.2 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Poverty rate16.7% → 10.7%(−6.0 pts)US over the same years: −0.8 pts
Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.
Section 09 · Service history
Veterans
Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)20.1%(263)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)22.3%(293)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era27.8%(365)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War1.7%(22)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.8%(10)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 1,311 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Over time
Mercer County, decade by decade
Mercer County population, inflation-adjusted income and home value, education, and diversity by year
Year
Population
Median household income
Median home value
Bachelor's degree+
Diversity score
1990
19,148
$54,659
$111,123
8.9%
11.6
2000
20,817
$64,769
$154,841
13.5%
15.7
2010
21,331
$68,987
$186,151
17.0%
19.1
2020
22,641
$63,404
$180,473
18.7%
26.2
2024
23,028
$64,824
$202,300
24.9%
23.4
Census years come from the decennial census and the latest year from the American Community Survey, so part of any change between those two rows can reflect the different surveys. Dollar figures are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; a figure ending in "+" was at the Census Bureau's reporting cap that year. The diversity score runs from 0 to 100; see how it's calculated.
