City · Butler County, Kentucky

Morgantown, Kentucky

Morgantown is a city in Butler County, Kentucky, part of the Bowling Green, KY metro area. It has 2,479 residents. Morgantown, Kentucky has a quality-of-life score of 11 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,983 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Kentucky it ranks #235 of 243 cities and towns. It ranks best on property crime rate (low), violent crime rate (low) and social associations (high). It ranks worst on dentists (low), adult smoking (high) and access to exercise opportunities (low).

11Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,983 of 15,651 cities and towns
Kentucky: #235 of 243 in KY
Population: 2,479 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 745.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 2153490

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.

Safety85#2,288/15,637
Economy0#15,561/15,631
Housing83#2,524/14,977
Health3#15,077/15,609
Healthcare3#15,234/15,650
Environment14#13,321/15,453
Education9#14,184/15,649
Infrastructure4#15,021/15,650
Community33#10,412/15,651
Leisure & amenities11#13,880/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Morgantown, Kentucky ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Butler 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 · low151 /100k
100/100Kentucky 1,262 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationButler County value
Violent crime rate · low56 /100k
96/100Kentucky 212 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationButler County value
Social associations · high16.2 /10k
94/100Kentucky 10.3 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteButler County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Kentucky 5.5 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataButler County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.46%
91/100Kentucky 0.75%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Public libraries · high1.6 /10k
88/100Kentucky 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesButler County value

Weaknesses

Dentists · low8 /100k
1/100Kentucky 67 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteButler County value
Adult smoking · high27.5%
1/100Kentucky 17.6%United States 16.1%2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Access to exercise opportunities · low20.1%
1/100Kentucky 69.8%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteButler County value
Bachelor's degree or higher · low5.3%
2/100Kentucky 27.5%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Job growth · low-4.9%
2/100Kentucky -0.4%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataButler County value
Poverty rate · high37.3%
2/100Kentucky 15.4%United States 12.1%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
2,650 (2015-2019) → 2,479 (2020-2024)
−6.5%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
67.6% (2015-2019) → 83.4% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
54.3% (2015-2019) → 45.1% (2020-2024)
−9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$26,581 (2015-2019) → $37,604 (2020-2024)
+41%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateWorsening
5.5% (2015-2019) → 12.9% (2020-2024)
+7.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherWorsening
12.3% (2015-2019) → 5.3% (2020-2024)
−7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

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, Morgantown, Kentucky improved on 1 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 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.

Improved1

Broadband+16 points67.6% → 83.4%

Declined1

Bachelor's+−7 points12.3% → 5.3%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Morgantown, Kentucky between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.4 min2015-2019	22.9 min2020-2024	+2.5 min	Within the margin of error	23%
Bachelor's degree or higher	12.3%2015-2019	5.3%2020-2024	−7 points	Declined	4%
Broadband subscriptions	67.6%2015-2019	83.4%2020-2024	+16 points	Improved	82%
Child poverty rate	54.3%2015-2019	45.1%2020-2024	−9.2 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Effective property tax rate	0.61%2015-2019	0.46%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	49%
High school diploma or higher	71.9%2015-2019	78.8%2020-2024	+6.9 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.0×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	84%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4772015-2019	0.4832020-2024	+0.006	Within the margin of error	46%
Median household income	$26,5812015-2019	$37,6042020-2024	+41%	Within the margin of error	76%
Poverty rate	39.0%2015-2019	37.3%2020-2024	−1.7 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	24.0%2015-2019	26.7%2020-2024	+2.7 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Rent-burdened households	38.1%2015-2019	40.9%2020-2024	+2.8 points	Within the margin of error	46%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	13.1%2015-2019	16.0%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	19%

“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 Morgantown, Kentucky five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Morgantown, 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, Morgantown, Kentucky itself moved −1.3 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

2,479 residents (±32)

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

909 households (±115)

Morgantown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $25k42%†379
$25k–50k22%†198
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

909 households (±115)

Morgantown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Own31%†283
Rent69%626

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

758 workers (±143)

Morgantown, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Drive alone79%599
Carpool19%†141
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 Bowling Green, KY

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 Butler County, the county holding most of Morgantown's residents.

Butler County has 190 employer establishments, 153 for every 10,000 residents (0.62× the US rate of 248; 0.74× Kentucky's), with 2,185 paid employees at an average annual pay of $48,485. The Census Bureau also counts 954 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 190; 954 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 153; US 248 · Kentucky 207
Paid employees: 2,185
Average annual pay: $48,485; US $68,342

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

Religious organizations	17	13.7	2.47×More than typical	33	$15,636	—
Ambulatory health care services	12	9.7	0.46×Fewer than typical	91	$61,978	22
Specialty trade contractors	12	9.7	0.62×Fewer than typical	65	$44,415	174
Restaurants and other eating places	11	8.9	0.48×Fewer than typical	199	$18,402	3
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	7	5.6	1.79×Too few to compare	20	$27,950	44
Limited-service restaurants	7	5.6	0.70×Too few to compare	142	$19,549	—
Construction of buildings	6	4.8	0.64×Too few to compare	38	$45,658	53
Truck transportation	6	4.8	0.95×Too few to compare	22	$49,636	39
Automotive repair and maintenance	5	4	0.80×Too few to compare	43	$44,116	33
Banks and credit unions	5	4	1.25×Too few to compare	59	$46,492	—
Gasoline stations	5	4	1.24×Too few to compare	23	$18,043	—
Individual and family services	5	4	1.44×Too few to compare	12	$20,833	—

Rank places for an industry Open Butler County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 12,427 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Butler 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.

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

House

Brett GuthrieR-KY-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 0.6%

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.

Butler County15100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Bowling Green, KY43

Other cities and towns in Butler 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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/2153490

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends