Census-designated place · Spencer County, Kentucky

Elk Creek, Kentucky

Elk Creek is a census-designated place in Spencer County, Kentucky, part of the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN metro area. It has 2,207 residents. Elk Creek, Kentucky has a quality-of-life score of 57 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,683 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Kentucky it ranks #52 of 243 cities and towns. It ranks best on child care cost burden (low), violent crime rate (low) and property crime rate (low). It ranks worst on grocery stores (low), mental health providers (low) and restaurants and bars (low).

57Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,683 of 15,651 cities and towns
Kentucky: #52 of 243 in KY
Population: 2,207 (2020-2024)
Land area: 6 mi²
Density: 381.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 2124328

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 69 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety77#3,666/15,637
Economy71#4,512/15,631
Housing93#1,064/14,977
Health50#7,770/15,609
Healthcare15#13,234/15,650
Environment35#10,012/15,453
Education83#2,711/15,649
Infrastructure82#2,743/15,650
Community16#13,125/15,651
Leisure & amenities9#14,213/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Elk Creek, Kentucky ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Spencer County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Child care cost burden · low16.2%
99/100Kentucky 25.2%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSpencer County value
Violent crime rate · low38 /100k
99/100Kentucky 212 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationSpencer County value
Property crime rate · low260 /100k
98/100Kentucky 1,262 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationSpencer County value
Job growth · high3.6%
96/100Kentucky -0.4%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataSpencer County value
Broadband subscriptions · high98.8%
94/100Kentucky 88.6%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Median household income · high$144,100
94/100Kentucky $64,481United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Weaknesses

Grocery stores · low0.5 /10k
1/100Kentucky 1.6 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSpencer County value
Mental health providers · low24 /100k
1/100Kentucky 329 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSpencer County value
Restaurants and bars · low2.9 /10k
2/100Kentucky 8.1 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSpencer County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Kentucky 2.6 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergySpencer County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low39.8%
5/100Kentucky 69.8%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSpencer County value
Comfortable days · low22.6%
5/100Kentucky 23.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSpencer County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
1,654 (2015-2019) → 2,207 (2020-2024)
+33%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
0.0% (2015-2019) → 18.5% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
30.9% (2015-2019) → 42.8% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$105,000 (2015-2019) → $144,100 (2020-2024)
+37%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateWorsening
2.0% (2015-2019) → 7.9% (2020-2024)
+5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.4× (2015-2019) → 2.8× (2020-2024)
+18%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Elk Creek, Kentucky improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Household income+37%$105,000 → $144,100

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Elk Creek, Kentucky between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	31.5 min2015-2019	33.0 min2020-2024	+1.6 min	Within the margin of error	31%
Bachelor's degree or higher	30.9%2015-2019	42.8%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	93%
Broadband subscriptions	96.5%2015-2019	98.8%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Effective property tax rate	0.87%2015-2019	0.75%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	39%
High school diploma or higher	94.8%2015-2019	97.2%2020-2024	+2.4 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Home price to income ratio	2.4×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	53%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3292015-2019	0.3702020-2024	+0.041	Within the margin of error	21%
Median household income	$105,0002015-2019	$144,1002020-2024	+37%	Improved	69%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	56%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Elk Creek, Kentucky five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Elk Creek, Kentucky in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Elk Creek, Kentucky itself moved +0 points in standing on average over the same 9 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

2,207 residents (±470)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

750 households (±138)

Elk Creek, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $25k1.2%†9
$25k–50k14%†102
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

750 households (±138)

Elk Creek, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Own99%742
Rent1.1%†8

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

1,210 workers (±290)

Elk Creek, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Drive alone76%921
Carpool3.4%†41
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Spencer County, the county holding most of Elk Creek's residents.

Spencer County has 255 employer establishments, 124 for every 10,000 residents (0.50× the US rate of 248; 0.60× Kentucky's), with 1,345 paid employees at an average annual pay of $36,709. The Census Bureau also counts 1,545 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 255; 1,545 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 124; US 248 · Kentucky 207
Paid employees: 1,345
Average annual pay: $36,709; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Spencer County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	41	20	1.29×More than typical	206	$55,738	190
Construction of buildings	24	11.7	1.55×More than typical	49	$45,306	55
Restaurants and other eating places	15	7.3	0.40×Fewer than typical	211	$17,336	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	15	7.3	1.09×About typical	54	$37,167	98
Ambulatory health care services	14	6.8	0.33×Fewer than typical	59	$56,153	70
Building equipment contractors	13	6.3	1.05×About typical	95	$61,716	25
Landscaping services	12	5.9	1.67×More than typical	36	$38,472	45
Religious organizations	12	5.9	1.06×About typical	41	$21,049	—
Lessors of real estate	11	5.4	0.44×Fewer than typical	21	$33,429	138
Other specialty trade contractors	10	4.9	1.94×More than typical	43	$58,233	75
Building finishing contractors	9	4.4	1.15×Too few to compare	23	$40,957	59
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	9	4.4	1.39×Too few to compare	45	$48,289	31

Rank places for an industry Open Spencer County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 20,500 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $93.9K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Elk Creek, Kentucky: $42.57 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $93.9K; +524% vs FY2025
Per resident: $42.57; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of Veterans Affairs$91.9K98%
Department of the Army$2,0722.2%

Top recipients

A TOTAL SOLUTION LLC$91.9K98%
LOCKRIDGE FBI LLC$8,1288.7%
INTEGRATED SERVICES INC. OF KY$2,1062.2%
JAMES NEWTON-$26.950.0%
TOTAL SOLUTION LLC-$9470.0%
WILLIAM HARRISON GROUP LLC

Spending by fiscal year

5.9KFY2017
1KFY2018
2.2KFY2019
2.3KFY2020
9.6KFY2021
6.7KFY2022
148KFY2023
4.8KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonresidential building construction · 2362$91.9K98%
Other specialty trade contractors · 2389$8,1288.7%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$2,1062.2%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 7, 2026, loaded Oct 7, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Elk Creek, Kentucky, so they do not add up across cities.

Elk Creek, Kentucky's figures are part of those of Spencer County, KY ($322K in FY2026), never added to them: 29% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Elk Creek is mostly in Spencer County.

See federal money in Spencer County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Elk Creek, Kentucky is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Thomas MassieR-KY-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 85%Missed 5.9%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Spencer County53100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN53

Other cities and towns in Spencer County

Largest first.

Taylorsville271,496

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2124328

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends