• county
  • FIPS 21121
  • Largest town: Barbourville

Knox County, Kentucky

Knox County had 29,657 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 386.3 square miles of land. It ranks 36th of 120 in Kentucky by population and 35th by land area.

Population
29,657
#36 of 120 in Kentucky · #1,453 in US
Area
386.3 sq mi
#35 of 120 in Kentucky · #2,582 in US
Density
77 / sq mi
#47 of 120 in Kentucky · #1,108 in US
Median household income
$37,640
#114 of 120 in Kentucky · #3,109 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Knox County within Kentucky. Pin: Frankfort.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Knox County

Knox County population, land area and income

Knox County had 29,657 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 386.3 square miles of land. It ranks 36th of 120 in Kentucky by population and 35th by land area. That works out to 76.8 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Kentucky has 19,740 residents; Knox County is somewhat larger.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $37,640 is in the bottom quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

29,657

3144th1st

1453rd of 3,144 (US)

Land area

386 sq mi

3144th1st

2582nd of 3,144 (US)

Density

76.8 / sq mi

3144th1st

1108th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$37,640

3143rd1st

3109th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Kentucky (120)

Population

29,657

120th1st

36th of 120 (KY)

Land area

386 sq mi

120th1st

35th of 120 (KY)

Density

76.8 / sq mi

120th1st

47th of 120 (KY)

Median household income

$37,640

120th1st

114th of 120 (KY)

How Knox County's population changed since 2020

Knox County lost 528 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 1.7%. That ranks 99th of 120 in Kentucky for growth. The median Kentucky county changed by +1.4%, and the state as a whole by +1.8%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Knox County recorded 1,553 births and 2,183 deaths, a natural change of -630. Net international migration added +89 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -22. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 630 people.

30.2k202030.0k202129.7k202229.7k202329.7k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
1,553
Deaths
2,183
Net international migration
+89
Net domestic migration
-22
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-66

Where Knox County is

The Census internal point of Knox County is at 36.888500, -83.855600. It sits in UTM zone 17N. The map shades Kentucky's 120 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Knox County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Adair County: +1.9%Kenton County: +3.3%Owen County: +1.2%Morgan County: +4.1%Bracken County: +1.1%Edmonson County: +4.0%Trigg County: +3.4%Jackson County: +3.0%Spencer County: +6.8%Clark County: +1.7%Jessamine County: +6.6%Green County: +3.8%Henry County: +3.2%Graves County: +0.8%Webster County: -1.3%Washington County: +1.9%Ohio County: +0.8%Knott County: -5.1%Meade County: +1.4%Carroll County: +2.5%Scott County: +7.2%Lincoln County: +2.7%Greenup County: -1.7%Boyle County: +2.1%Hardin County: +1.8%Nelson County: +4.1%Hart County: +3.2%Christian County: -2.4%Carlisle County: -0.6%Crittenden County: -0.2%Elliott County: -1.0%Garrard County: +6.3%Larue County: +1.7%Lee County: -0.7%Leslie County: -7.1%Hancock County: -1.0%Lewis County: -1.6%Lyon County: +4.6%McLean County: -0.1%Magoffin County: -4.2%Martin County: -4.9%Mason County: -1.1%Rockcastle County: +1.0%Menifee County: +3.2%Russell County: +2.6%Whitley County: +1.5%Todd County: +3.9%Union County: -3.5%Wolfe County: -2.9%Bell County: -3.9%Boyd County: -0.9%Butler County: +1.9%Metcalfe County: +2.7%Grant County: +2.8%Simpson County: +3.7%Pike County: -5.2%Gallatin County: +1.5%Harlan County: -6.4%Fayette County: +2.1%Logan County: +3.5%Muhlenberg County: -1.2%Bath County: +1.8%Mercer County: +3.8%Barren County: +2.5%Franklin County: +1.6%Bullitt County: +4.2%Boone County: +5.6%Campbell County: +0.9%Jefferson County: +1.4%Wayne County: +0.4%Ballard County: -1.1%Anderson County: +4.1%Pulaski County: +2.7%Knox County: -1.7%Laurel County: +1.0%Breckinridge County: +3.8%Oldham County: +4.2%Letcher County: -6.2%Lawrence County: -3.1%McCracken County: -0.6%Nicholas County: +3.7%Owsley County: -2.6%Powell County: -1.3%Bourbon County: +0.2%Calloway County: +3.7%Henderson County: -1.1%Clinton County: -0.5%Warren County: +9.6%Montgomery County: +2.4%Floyd County: -3.5%Woodford County: +3.1%Hopkins County: -0.3%Johnson County: -2.4%Marshall County: +0.1%Estill County: -1.1%Cumberland County: +3.2%Fleming County: +3.3%Madison County: +7.1%Carter County: -1.9%Allen County: +7.1%Daviess County: +1.0%Harrison County: +4.3%Perry County: -5.7%Fulton County: -3.5%Clay County: -3.5%Robertson County: +9.1%Trimble County: +1.5%Taylor County: +3.1%Shelby County: +3.9%McCreary County: -0.2%Breathitt County: -6.5%Livingston County: -0.6%Hickman County: -3.0%Rowan County: -0.2%Casey County: +0.2%Monroe County: -1.4%Marion County: +1.3%Grayson County: +2.3%Caldwell County: -0.2%Pendleton County: +1.3%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -1.6%
  2. < +0.2%
  3. < +1.9%
  4. < +3.7%
  5. ≥ +3.7%
no data

Orange pin: Knox County internal point. Dark pin: Frankfort.

Internal point

Decimal
36.888500, -83.855600
DMS
36°53'18.60"N 83°51'20.16"W
UTM
17N 245519.7E 4086311.8N
Geohash
dns3gg65n
Plus code
868RV4QV+CQ

Towns in Knox County

2 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Knox County, 4,922 people together, or 17% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Knox County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Barbourville with 3,081.

  1. 01Barbourville3,081
  2. 02Corbin (part)1,841
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Knox County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 4 neighbors for Knox County. The most populous is Laurel County, KY, with 63,353 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Frankfort and the nearest big city

Frankfort is 105.7 miles NNW of Knox County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Knoxville, TN (population 198,722), 63.6 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Somerset, KY (population 12,389), 43.6 miles away.

Knox County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Knox County is 21121: state code 21 for Kentucky plus county code 121. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $37,640.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Knox County, Kentucky?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 29,657. That is down 528 people (1.7%) from the July 2020 estimate of 30,185.

What is the FIPS code of Knox County?

21121. The first two digits (21) are Kentucky; the last three (121) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Knox County?

Barbourville, with 3,081 residents inside Knox County in 2024.

Which counties border Knox County?

4 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Laurel County, KY; Whitley County, KY; Bell County, KY; Clay County, KY.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.