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Boyd County, KY: population growth, jobs and income

Boyd County lost 197 residents between 2024 and 2025 (−0.4%).

Boyd County had an estimated 47,751 residents in 2025, down 1.0% (458 fewer people) since 2020. That is slower than Kentucky as a whole (+2.2%), and the 87th fastest growth of 120 counties in Kentucky.

Data as of 2025 · updated

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In the Boyd County report

One-time $99 PDF: everything on this page for Boyd County, ranked against Kentucky and the U.S., plus these figures that are not on the free page:

  • Median gross rent$849/mo2020–24
  • Vacant homes, incl. seasonal and second homes11.2%2020–24
  • New homes permitted, last 12 months12025-10/2026-09
  • Rent growth, 5 yearsIn the report
  • Permits in 5+ unit buildingsIn the report
  • IRS income moving in (net AGI)In the report
  • Neighbouring-county comparison tableIn the report

What's inside: 5 pages

  1. 1 Summary, headline numbers and ranks (free preview)
  2. 2 Ranks and the neighbouring-county table
  3. 3 Migration, with IRS mover and income flows
  4. 4 Rent, vacant homes, permits and employers
  5. 5 Every source and the methods
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Headline numbers

What the numbers say

Net domestic migration added 55 people in 2025: more people moved in from other U.S. counties than moved out.

Private employers had 21,522 paid employees in mid-March 2023, −0.3% since 2018 (County Business Patterns).

Unemployment averaged 5.5% in 2025, 0.4 points higher than in 2019 (before the pandemic).

Builders were authorized to start 12 new homes in 2025, or 0.3 per 1,000 residents.

Median household income was $61,118 in the 2020–24 American Community Survey, +19.8% since 2016–20.

Across the 3,107 U.S. counties with a comparable estimate, its population growth ranks 2,173rd.

Part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH metro area.

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Boyd County population by year

Resident population, July 1 estimate (Census Bureau)
YearPopulationChange
202547,751−197
202447,948+68
202347,880−182
202248,062+306
202147,756−453
202048,209–

Census Bureau population estimates, July 1 of each year.

What drove the change in Boyd County

Boyd County lost 458 people since 2020 even though 755 more people moved in from other U.S. counties than left: deaths outnumbered births by 1,307, and net international migration added 63.

Components of population change, people (Census Bureau)
Component20252020–25Share
Natural changebirths minus deaths−260−1,307
International migrationfrom and to other countries+4+63
Domestic migrationfrom and to other U.S. counties+55+755
Census adjustmentbalancing residual+4+31
Total change−197−458

Census Bureau population estimates, components of change, each year July 1 to June 30. The components add up to the change in the estimate; the Census adjustment is the small balancing figure the Bureau publishes.

How it ranks

MeasureIn KentuckyAmong U.S. counties
Population growth87th of 1202,173rd of 3,107
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents91st of 1201,713th of 3,108
Private-sector job growth73rd of 1201,917th of 3,092
Median household income44th of 1201,955th of 3,107
Lowest unemployment rate82nd of 1202,740th of 3,108
New homes permitted per 1,000 residents68th of 972,613th of 3,005

1st = highest (lowest for unemployment). Counties are ranked only against others with a figure for the same period.

Get the county report — $99

The County Growth and Demographics Report for Boyd County, KY as a PDF, from federal data: population and migration, housing and rents, permits, private employers and jobs, unemployment, ranks in the state and the country, and neighbouring counties, with a source next to every number. Pay once, no subscription.

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Neighbouring counties

Boyd County's population change was stronger than in all 5 of its neighbouring counties (−1.0%, 2020–25).

Its median household income ($61,118, 2020–24) is higher than in all 5 of its neighbouring counties.

Boyd County, KY and its 5 neighbouring counties: public federal figures
CountyPopulation2025Population change2020–25Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents2025Homes permitted per 1,000 residents2025Median household income2020–24
Boyd County, KY This county47,751−1.0%1.20.3$61,118
Lawrence County, OH55,710−4.2%2.90.4$58,325
Lawrence County, KY15,765−3.3%4.1–$46,772
Carter County, KY26,149−1.7%4.20.1$51,235
Greenup County, KY35,213−1.9%4.90.6$60,751
Wayne County, WV37,309−4.0%0.11.6$58,878

Census Bureau population estimates and building permits, American Community Survey 5-year income. Rates per 1,000 residents. – means no figure, or a base too small for a change or rate (it would swing on a few people). A figure from another period shows its year and is left out of the comparison.

All 120 Kentucky counties · Every state

Questions

Is Boyd County growing?

No. Its population fell 1.0% between 2020 and 2025, about 458 fewer people (Census Bureau population estimates). Kentucky as a whole changed +2.2% over the same years. That ranks 87th of 120 counties in Kentucky for population growth.

How many people moved to Boyd County?

On net, about 55 people in 2025: that many more moved in from other U.S. counties than moved out (Census Bureau net domestic migration estimate).

What is the unemployment rate in Boyd County?

It averaged 5.5% in 2025 (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual average).

What is the population of Boyd County?

About 47,751 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's population estimate for July 1, 2025.

How many jobs are in Boyd County?

Private employers there had 21,522 paid employees in mid-March 2023, −0.3% since 2018 (Census Bureau County Business Patterns; government jobs and the self-employed are not counted).

What Beacon CRE covers in Kentucky

Map, parcel and listing layers cover North and South Carolina only for now. This page and the other Kentucky county pages carry the public federal growth figures.

Boyd County data alerts

Email me when Boyd County gets new Census numbers: population, building permits, jobs and income. About 4 emails a year, one click to stop.

We use your address only to email you when new data for Boyd County is out: what changed, with a link to that county's report. No newsletter, no other sales emails. Delete it any time with the link in every email. We'll email you a link to confirm first; nothing starts until you click it. Privacy notice.

Sources and method

Each number shows its own period. Changes compare the latest period with five years earlier (or the earliest period available). Beacon CRE last refreshed these figures on 2026-11-05. Figures come from public federal statistics and are informational only, not investment advice. Check the source before relying on a number. Methodology: how we compute every number. More on every layer: data sources and licences.

Jobs outside North and South Carolina use County Business Patterns (paid private-sector employees in mid-March); wages and government jobs are not included.