City · Caldwell County, Kentucky

Princeton, Kentucky

Princeton is a city in Caldwell County, Kentucky. It has 6,241 residents. Princeton, Kentucky has a quality-of-life score of 32 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,581 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Kentucky it ranks #108 of 243 cities and towns. It ranks best on drug overdose deaths (low), violent crime rate (low) and home price to income ratio (low). It ranks worst on average weekly wage (low), traffic deaths (high) and suicide rate (high).

32Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,581 of 15,651 cities and towns
Kentucky: #108 of 243 in KY
Population: 6,241 (2020-2024)
Land area: 9 mi²
Density: 694.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 2163138

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.

Safety40#9,332/15,637
Economy19#12,592/15,631
Housing90#1,560/14,977
Health16#13,067/15,609
Healthcare27#11,349/15,650
Environment20#12,321/15,453
Education38#9,660/15,649
Infrastructure49#7,924/15,650
Community51#7,644/15,651
Leisure & amenities54#7,231/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Kentucky 23.1 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataCaldwell County value
Violent crime rate · low64 /100k
95/100Kentucky 212 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationCaldwell County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.0×
90/100Kentucky 3.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Job growth · high2.1%
89/100Kentucky -0.4%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataCaldwell County value
Social associations · high14.3 /10k
89/100Kentucky 10.3 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaldwell County value
Public libraries · high1.6 /10k
87/100Kentucky 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesCaldwell County value

Weaknesses

Average weekly wage · low$848
3/100Kentucky $1,202United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCaldwell County value
Traffic deaths · high33.3 /100k
5/100Kentucky 17.0 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataCaldwell County value
Suicide rate · high24.3 /100k
10/100Kentucky 18.0 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateCaldwell County value
Adult smoking · high20.6%
10/100Kentucky 17.6%United States 16.1%2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Depression · high28.4%
11/100Kentucky 27.4%United States 20.7%2022Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Distance to an airport · high96 mi
11/100Kentucky 44 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauCaldwell County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
1.5 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
74.9% (2015-2019) → 93.8% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
54.2% (2015-2019) → 43.5% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
10.3% (2015-2019) → 5.3% (2020-2024)
−5 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higherWorsening
20.2% (2015-2019) → 16.7% (2020-2024)
−3.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$40,574 (2015-2019) → $47,411 (2020-2024)
+17%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

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, Princeton, Kentucky improved on 1 of 13 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.

Improved1

Broadband+19 points74.9% → 93.8%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Princeton, Kentucky between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.2 min2015-2019	21.0 min2020-2024	−4.2 min	Within the margin of error	86%
Bachelor's degree or higher	20.2%2015-2019	16.7%2020-2024	−3.5 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Broadband subscriptions	74.9%2015-2019	93.8%2020-2024	+19 points	Improved	88%
Child poverty rate	20.4%2015-2019	18.7%2020-2024	−1.7 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Effective property tax rate	0.59%2015-2019	0.51%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
High school diploma or higher	88.5%2015-2019	87.9%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Home price to income ratio	2.0×2015-2019	2.0×2020-2024	+0.1×	Within the margin of error	75%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5152015-2019	0.4422020-2024	−0.072	Within the margin of error	91%
Median household income	$40,5742015-2019	$47,4112020-2024	+17%	Within the margin of error	27%
Poverty rate	17.6%2015-2019	15.8%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Rent as share of income	30.8%2015-2019	27.8%2020-2024	−3 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Rent-burdened households	54.2%2015-2019	43.5%2020-2024	−11 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.3%2015-2019	5.3%2020-2024	−5 points	Within the margin of error	86%

“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 Princeton, Kentucky five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Princeton, 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, Princeton, Kentucky itself moved +12.6 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

6,241 residents (±18)

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

2,367 households (±165)

Princeton, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Under $25k26%†621
$25k–50k25%†588
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,367 households (±165)

Princeton, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Own53%1,250
Rent47%1,117

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−14.2 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,367 workers (±314)

Princeton, Kentucky
Kentucky share

Drive alone71%1,685
Carpool22%†511
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 Caldwell County, the county holding most of Princeton's residents.

Caldwell County has 266 employer establishments, 211 for every 10,000 residents (0.85× the US rate of 248; 1.02× Kentucky's), with 3,557 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,871. The Census Bureau also counts 788 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 266; 788 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 211; US 248 · Kentucky 207
Paid employees: 3,557
Average annual pay: $42,871; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	26	20.7	1.12×About typical	388	$16,619	6
Religious organizations	18	14.3	2.58×More than typical	59	$25,831	—
Ambulatory health care services	17	13.5	0.65×Fewer than typical	137	$56,642	29
Specialty trade contractors	15	11.9	0.77×Fewer than typical	59	$41,271	113
Full-service restaurants	12	9.5	1.24×About typical	154	$17,740	—
Limited-service restaurants	11	8.7	1.09×About typical	216	$16,134	3
Building equipment contractors	9	7.1	1.19×Too few to compare	28	$33,893	15
Clothing and accessories stores	9	7.1	1.97×Too few to compare	49	$16,918	9
Truck transportation	9	7.1	1.41×Too few to compare	71	$58,803	22
Legal services	8	6.4	1.18×Too few to compare	12	$28,917	5
Automotive repair and maintenance	6	4.8	0.95×Too few to compare	12	$51,000	21
Gasoline stations	6	4.8	1.47×Too few to compare	52	$23,077	—

Rank places for an industry Open Caldwell County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 12,590 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 -$4,175 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Princeton, Kentucky: -$0.67 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$4,175
Per resident: -$0.67; 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

WSP USA SERVICES INC.-$4,1750.0%

Spending by fiscal year

14.7KFY2017
65KFY2018
4.6KFY2020
24.6KFY2022
11.7KFY2023
25.6KFY2024
-35.8FY2025
-4.2KFY2026

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

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

See federal money in Caldwell 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.

Princeton, 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.

Caldwell County39100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Caldwell County

Largest first.

Fredonia466

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/2163138

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends