Perry County is home to 27,499 people in Kentucky. Four-year degrees are less common here than nationally, at 15% of adults. The typical home is worth $91,800, having more than doubled since 2000. 26.8% of people here live below the federal poverty line. The foreign-born share is 1%. Households here earn about 34% less than in Kentucky as a whole.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $42,181, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 41.5
US median: 38.9
Less educated
15% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Stable housing
home values roughly flat, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Perry County
What changed most since 1990
White share97.6% → 93.7%(−3.9 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Median home value (2024 dollars)$82,802 → $91,800(+11%)US over the same years: +67%
Adults with a bachelor's degree6.7% → 14.8%(+8.0 pts)US over the same years: +15.3 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)11.6%(123)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)11.8%(125)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era42.5%(449)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War1.8%(19)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II1.3%(14)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 1,056 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
Perry County, decade by decade
Perry 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
30,283
$38,886
$82,802
6.7%
5.9
2000
29,390
$40,239
$75,234
8.9%
7.7
2010
28,712
$42,505
$80,416
11.9%
9.3
2020
28,473
$47,989
$95,630
14.3%
14.6
2024
27,499
$42,181
$91,800
14.8%
15.0
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.
