Scores by category

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

Safety59#6,334/15,637
Economy2#15,273/15,631
Housing53#7,066/14,977
Health2#15,249/15,609
Healthcare25#11,801/15,650
Environment87#2,000/15,453
Education16#13,209/15,649
Infrastructure9#14,228/15,650
Community18#12,794/15,651
Leisure & amenities68#5,032/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Property crime rate · low226 /100k
98/100Kentucky 1,262 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationRussell County value
Pharmacies · high2.7 /10k
92/100Kentucky 2.4 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsRussell County value
Child care cost burden · low21.3%
91/100Kentucky 25.2%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRussell County value
Violent crime rate · low82 /100k
90/100Kentucky 212 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationRussell County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Kentucky 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRussell County value
Job growth · high1.5%
84/100Kentucky -0.4%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataRussell County value

Weaknesses

Median household income · low$20,541
0/100Kentucky $64,481United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Poverty rate · high44.4%
1/100Kentucky 15.4%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Adult smoking · high25.1%
2/100Kentucky 17.6%United States 16.1%2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.570
2/100Kentucky 0.477United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Unemployment rate · high16.2%
2/100Kentucky 4.6%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Child poverty rate · high53.4%
3/100Kentucky 18.9%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,187 (2015-2019) → 1,739 (2020-2024)
−20%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Unemployment rateWorsening
6.9% (2015-2019) → 16.2% (2020-2024)
+9.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.2% (2015-2019) → 79.3% (2020-2024)
+9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.1× (2015-2019) → 5.9× (2020-2024)
+44%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Poverty rateWorsening
36.1% (2015-2019) → 44.4% (2020-2024)
+8.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
10.8% (2015-2019) → 5.9% (2020-2024)
−4.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Jamestown, Kentucky improved on 0 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Jamestown, Kentucky between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.1 min2015-2019	23.3 min2020-2024	+4.1 min	Within the margin of error	13%
Bachelor's degree or higher	10.1%2015-2019	7.5%2020-2024	−2.6 points	Within the margin of error	14%
Broadband subscriptions	70.2%2015-2019	79.3%2020-2024	+9.1 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Child poverty rate	53.0%2015-2019	53.4%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Effective property tax rate	0.77%2015-2019	0.67%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	34%
High school diploma or higher	79.7%2015-2019	82.9%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Home price to income ratio	4.1×2015-2019	5.9×2020-2024	+1.8×	Within the margin of error	5%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4812015-2019	0.5702020-2024	+0.089	Within the margin of error	6%
Median household income	$24,6882015-2019	$20,5412020-2024	−17%	Within the margin of error	2%
Poverty rate	36.1%2015-2019	44.4%2020-2024	+8.3 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Rent as share of income	34.6%2015-2019	33.6%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Rent-burdened households	59.0%2015-2019	62.6%2020-2024	+3.6 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 Jamestown, Kentucky five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Jamestown, 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, Jamestown, Kentucky itself moved −5.3 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

1,739 residents (±445)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 40–49 men (−2.7 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,739 residents (±445)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

White89%1,545
Black4.2%†73
Hispanic or Latino1.5%†26

Education

1,173 residents (±266)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

No high school diploma17%†200
High school or GED50%†588
Some college20%†

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

706 households (±168)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $25k55%†389
$25k–50k19%†132
$50k–75k11%†81
$75k–100k5.8%†41
$100k–150k4.4%†31
$150k–200k3.8%†27
$200k or more0.7%†5

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

706 households (±168)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Own43%†305
Rent57%†401

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Rent (+17.1 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

361 households (±118)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $75079%†284
$750–1,00018%†66
$1,000–1,5003.0%†11

Home values

305 homes (±123)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $150k65%†199
$150k–250k26%†79
$250k–400k6.6%†20

Age of homes

830 homes (±180)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

2010 or later6.5%†54
2000–200912%†102
1980–199942%†352

Size of homes

830 homes (±180)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Studio3.1%†26
1 bedroom19%†155
2 bedrooms32%†269

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

418 workers (±138)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Drive alone83%†345
Carpool6.7%†28
Public transit0.0%0
Walk2.6%†11
Bike0.0%0
Work from home6.9%†29
Other1.2%†5

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

389 workers (±133)

Jamestown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under 15 min39%†150
15–29 min29%†113
30–44 min13%†49

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Russell County, the county holding most of Jamestown's residents.

Russell County has 353 employer establishments, 192 for every 10,000 residents (0.77× the US rate of 248; 0.93× Kentucky's), with 5,047 paid employees at an average annual pay of $40,588. The Census Bureau also counts 1,471 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 353; 1,471 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 192; US 248 · Kentucky 207
Paid employees: 5,047
Average annual pay: $40,588; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	35	19.1	1.04×About typical	469	$14,139	5
Specialty trade contractors	23	12.5	0.81×About typical	166	$42,042	206
Ambulatory health care services	21	11.4	0.55×Fewer than typical	255	$56,592	60
Full-service restaurants	19	10.4	1.35×More than typical	135	$15,726	—
Religious organizations	17	9.3	1.67×More than typical	38	$20,711	—
Gasoline stations	15	8.2	2.52×More than typical	96	$19,188	—
Limited-service restaurants	12	6.5	0.82×About typical	316	$13,354	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	12	6.5	0.97×About typical	39	$21,513	156
Auto parts, accessories and tire stores	11	6	3.43×More than typical	63	$30,921	10
Banks and credit unions	11	6	1.86×More than typical	97	$56,691	—
General merchandise stores	10	5.5	3.08×More than typical	75	$22,800	14
Landscaping services	9	4.9	1.40×Too few to compare	31	$22,323	49

Rank places for an industry Open Russell County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 18,345 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 $215.4K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Jamestown, Kentucky: $124 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $215.4K; −82% vs FY2025
Per resident: $124; US $1,994
Sole-source: 1.1%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.6%; 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 the Army$209.4K97%
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$4,0641.9%
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service$1,9210.9%

Top recipients

AMERICAN BRIDGE COMPANY$176.7K82%
YELLOWSTONE ELECTRIC CO$25.6K12%
ALDEVRA LLC$5,5442.6%
A & S LIVESTOCK INC$4,0641.9%
LINDE INC.$3,3761.6%
DAVIS H. ELLIOT CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, INC.

Spending by fiscal year

1.1MFY2017
223.9KFY2018
136.8KFY2019
54.7KFY2020
-106.2KFY2021
3.9MFY2022
1.5MFY2023
238.7KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Other heavy and civil engineering construction · 2379$176.7K82%
Electrical equipment manufacturing · 3353$25.6K12%
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416$5,5442.6%
Other support services · 5619$4,0641.9%
Basic chemical manufacturing · 3251$3,3761.6%
Other specialty trade contractors · 2389

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 Jamestown, Kentucky, so they do not add up across cities.

Jamestown, Kentucky's figures are part of those of Russell County, KY ($6.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 3.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Russell 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.

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

House

James ComerR-KY-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.4%

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.

Russell County39100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Russell County

Largest first.

Russell Springs332,773

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/2140114

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends