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TrueCOLA Project, the true cost of living: a laptop showing cost of living by state, household income against essential costs, and essential cost categories, for 50 states, 435 districts, and more than 26,000 ZIP codes.

August 2026 · KY

Kentucky

Current published state margins from the monthly report. District pages for Kentucky are listed below.

August 2026 median household renter margin -$1,403 per month.

In August 2026, the renter margin in Kentucky is highest for the Senior 65+ group at -$709 per month and lowest for the Two Social Security group at -$2,992. The median household renter margin here is -$1,403, compared with a national figure of -$959.

Monthly margins by income group

Income groupRenterOwner blendedOwner with mortgageOwner paid off
One adult-$2,393-$1,995-$2,479-$1,513
Two adults-$2,428-$2,030-$2,513-$1,548
Median household-$1,403-$1,005-$1,488-$523
Senior 65+-$709-$312-$795+$171
Senior couple 65+-$902-$504-$987-$22
Social Security-$2,198-$1,801-$2,284-$1,318
Two Social Security-$2,992-$2,594-$3,077-$2,112

Kentucky on the map

Kentucky across published months

Median household renter margin changed by -$11 from July 2026 to August 2026. Both figures are the published monthly values.

EditionMedian renter marginDated report
August 2026-$1,403August 2026 dated page
July 2026-$1,392July 2026 dated page
June 2026-$1,390June 2026 dated page

Districts in Kentucky

Median household margins for each congressional district in Kentucky, August 2026. Each district page shows every income group, the change from the prior month, and past editions.

DistrictRepresentativeRenterOwner blended
KY-1James Comer-$1,581-$1,202
KY-2Brett Guthrie-$1,115-$825
KY-3Morgan McGarvey-$1,083-$930
KY-4Thomas Massie-$644-$249
KY-5Harold Rogers-$2,189-$1,781
KY-6Andy Barr-$1,204-$895

What these numbers mean

The margin is net income minus required costs. The margin is not an inflation rate and does not replace the CPI. A negative margin means the required monthly costs are larger than net income after taxes.

The renter column uses current asking rent. The owner columns use housing costs for homeowners: with a mortgage, with the home paid off, and a blend of the two. The basket is a market-price standard: current asking rent and unsubsidized average marketplace premiums. It can run above what a settled household pays, and the methodology states this.

Read the full method on the methodology page, compare other states on the list of all states, or open the district map.