City · Mercer County, Kentucky

Harrodsburg, Kentucky

Harrodsburg is a city in Mercer County, Kentucky. It has 9,313 residents. Harrodsburg, Kentucky has a quality-of-life score of 31 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,779 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Kentucky it ranks #117 of 243 cities and towns. It ranks best on time spent in the emergency room (low), property crime rate (low) and rent-burdened households (low). It ranks worst on public EV charging ports (low), gyms and fitness centers (low) and dentists (low).

31Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,779 of 15,651 cities and towns
Kentucky: #117 of 243 in KY
Population: 9,313 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 1,345.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 2134966

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 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.

Safety54#7,137/15,637
Economy30#10,945/15,631
Housing93#981/14,977
Health17#13,015/15,609
Healthcare27#11,404/15,650
Environment34#10,234/15,453
Education33#10,455/15,649
Infrastructure28#11,213/15,650
Community45#8,536/15,651
Leisure & amenities30#10,986/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Harrodsburg, Kentucky ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Mercer 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

Time spent in the emergency room · low99 min
96/100Kentucky 153 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMercer County value
Property crime rate · low367 /100k
94/100Kentucky 1,262 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationMercer County value
Rent-burdened households · low37.3%
91/100Kentucky 45.4%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Rent as share of income · low23.5%
90/100Kentucky 28.1%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Kentucky 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMercer County value
Average commute time · low19.9 min
85/100Kentucky 24.0 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Kentucky 2.6 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyMercer County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.0 /10k
4/100Kentucky 1.0 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMercer County value
Dentists · low22 /100k
5/100Kentucky 67 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMercer County value
Primary care physicians · low22 /100k
6/100Kentucky 63 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMercer County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low49.5%
11/100Kentucky 69.8%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMercer County value
Median household income · low$48,381
13/100Kentucky $64,481United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Trends

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

PopulationRising
8,418 (2015-2019) → 9,313 (2020-2024)
+11%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.6% (2015-2019) → 86.3% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
High school diploma or higherImproving
77.7% (2015-2019) → 90.0% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Child poverty rateImproving
29.1% (2015-2019) → 22.0% (2020-2024)
−7.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateImproving
21.3% (2015-2019) → 14.5% (2020-2024)
−6.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.6× (2015-2019) → 3.2× (2020-2024)
+25%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, Harrodsburg, Kentucky improved on 1 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 14 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

Broadband+13 points73.6% → 86.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Harrodsburg, Kentucky between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.9 min2015-2019	19.9 min2020-2024	−0.9 min	Within the margin of error	59%
Bachelor's degree or higher	16.5%2015-2019	21.0%2020-2024	+4.5 points	Within the margin of error	64%
Broadband subscriptions	73.6%2015-2019	86.3%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	72%
Child poverty rate	29.1%2015-2019	22.0%2020-2024	−7.1 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Effective property tax rate	0.95%2015-2019	0.82%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	42%
High school diploma or higher	77.7%2015-2019	90.0%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	97%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	3.2×2020-2024	+0.6×	Within the margin of error	40%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4242015-2019	0.4002020-2024	−0.024	Within the margin of error	70%
Median household income	$39,4492015-2019	$48,3812020-2024	+23%	Within the margin of error	39%
Poverty rate	21.3%2015-2019	14.5%2020-2024	−6.8 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	27.3%2015-2019	23.5%2020-2024	−3.8 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Rent-burdened households	39.3%2015-2019	37.3%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Unemployment rate	8.9%2015-2019	6.1%2020-2024	−2.9 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.8%2015-2019	9.0%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	43%

“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 Harrodsburg, Kentucky five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Harrodsburg, 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, Harrodsburg, Kentucky itself moved +7.6 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

9,313 residents (±25)

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

4,150 households (±261)

Harrodsburg, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $25k18%764
$25k–50k33%1,379
$50k–75k21%†880

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,150 households (±261)

Harrodsburg, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Own60%2,477
Rent40%1,673

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

4,517 workers (±443)

Harrodsburg, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Drive alone75%3,396
Carpool13%†604
Public transit0.0%0

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 Mercer County, the county holding most of Harrodsburg's residents.

Mercer County has 359 employer establishments, 155 for every 10,000 residents (0.62× the US rate of 248; 0.75× Kentucky's), with 5,351 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,890. The Census Bureau also counts 1,840 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 359; 1,840 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 155; US 248 · Kentucky 207
Paid employees: 5,351
Average annual pay: $53,890; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	30	12.9	0.84×About typical	154	$47,312	244
Religious organizations	25	10.8	1.94×More than typical	96	$17,781	—
Restaurants and other eating places	23	9.9	0.54×Fewer than typical	375	$16,853	9
Ambulatory health care services	21	9.1	0.43×Fewer than typical	181	$55,564	55
Automotive repair and maintenance	15	6.5	1.29×More than typical	52	$42,615	41
Lessors of real estate	12	5.2	0.42×Fewer than typical	12	$45,333	159
Full-service restaurants	11	4.7	0.62×Fewer than typical	92	$16,946	—
Banks and credit unions	10	4.3	1.34×More than typical	57	$60,018	—
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	10	4.3	1.37×More than typical	55	$60,709	49
Limited-service restaurants	10	4.3	0.54×Fewer than typical	268	$17,067	5
Accounting, tax preparation and payroll services	9	3.9	0.95×Too few to compare	18	$26,722	18
Truck transportation	9	3.9	0.77×Too few to compare	291	$69,577	65

Rank places for an industry Open Mercer County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 23,172 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Harrodsburg, Kentucky: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

9.9KFY2019
18KFY2020
8.3KFY2021
4.7KFY2022
1.6KFY2023
12.9KFY2024
11.8KFY2025

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 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 Harrodsburg, Kentucky, so they do not add up across cities.

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

See federal money in Mercer 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.

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

House

Andy BarrR-KY-6 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 7.1%

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.

Mercer County48100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Mercer County

Largest first.

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/2134966

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends