The 10 Best College Towns In Kentucky For 2024


Believe it or not, America has the best colleges in the world. It's been proven by data (and surveys) that the U.S. educational system is of the highest quality

It's actually not even close and Kentucky is home to a handful of them.

While we could debate which colleges within Kentucky are the 'best,' that's not the goal of this post.

Instead, ride along with us as we determine which college towns in Kentucky are the best.

You know, the type of places where there's energy and stimulation, but the type of place you can walk around at night. The happiest, chillest, most downright fun places where you can send your kids off to college where you won't break the bank, or worry about their well being.

The 10 Best College Towns In Kentucky For 2024

  1. Highland Heights, KY
  2. Murray, KY
  3. Berea, KY
  4. Wilmore, KY
  5. Morehead, KY
  6. Williamsburg, KY
  7. Owensboro, KY
  8. Danville, KY
  9. Richmond, KY
  10. Frankfort, KY

While some of these may not seem like a 'real' college town per se, when you look at the numbers, it's hard to argue against.

And for those who live in Highland Heights, Murray and Berea - we tip our hats to you and we'll schedule a tour for next week. You can see where Highland Heights ranks in terms of the best college town in America.

Read on to find out more or for more on Kentucky check out:

The 10 Best College Towns In Kentucky For 2024

Highland Heights, KY
Source: Wikipedia User | CC-BY-SA-3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 6,566
% Undergrad Pop.: 165.1% (best)
Median Rent: $1,016 (14th best)
Unemployment Rate: 301.3% (5th best)
Crime Rank: 3rd best
More on Highland Heights: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Northern Kentucky University

Murray, KY
Source: Wikipedia User Thelatchkeykid at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 17,414
% Undergrad Pop.: 43.0% (3rd best)
Median Rent: $762 (4th best)
Unemployment Rate: 508.6% (10th best)
Crime Rank: 9th best
More on Murray: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Murray State University

Berea, KY
Source: Wikipedia User Dwight Burdette | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 15,404
% Undergrad Pop.: 10.3% (9th best)
Median Rent: $779 (6th best)
Unemployment Rate: 235.8% (3rd best)
Crime Rank: 5th best
More on Berea: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Berea College

Wilmore, KY
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
9
/10

Population: 6,017
% Undergrad Pop.: 22.2% (6th best)
Median Rent: $857 (9th best)
Unemployment Rate: 209.7% (2nd best)
Crime Rank: best
More on Wilmore: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Asbury University, Asbury Theological Seminary

Morehead, KY
Source: Wikipedia User W.marsh | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 7,001
% Undergrad Pop.: 96.4% (2nd best)
Median Rent: $739 (3rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 523.0% (11th best)
Crime Rank: 10th best
More on Morehead: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Morehead State University

Williamsburg, KY
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 5,229
% Undergrad Pop.: 29.7% (5th best)
Median Rent: $660 (2nd best)
Unemployment Rate: 1214.4% (17th best)
Crime Rank: 4th best
More on Williamsburg: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of the Cumberlands

Owensboro, KY
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 60,019
% Undergrad Pop.: 2.3% (16th best)
Median Rent: $888 (10th best)
Unemployment Rate: 419.7% (8th best)
Crime Rank: 16th best
More on Owensboro: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Owensboro Community and Technical College, Brescia University, Kentucky Wesleyan College

Danville, KY
Source: Wikipedia User FloNight (Sydney Poore) and Russell Poore | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 17,191
% Undergrad Pop.: 6.1% (11th best)
Median Rent: $765 (5th best)
Unemployment Rate: 815.6% (16th best)
Crime Rank: 6th best
More on Danville: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Centre College

Richmond, KY
Source: Wikipedia User FloNight (Sydney Poore) and Russell Poore | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 34,883
% Undergrad Pop.: 38.1% (4th best)
Median Rent: $832 (7th best)
Unemployment Rate: 728.8% (14th best)
Crime Rank: 13th best
More on Richmond: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Eastern Kentucky University

Frankfort, KY
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 28,460
% Undergrad Pop.: 7.5% (10th best)
Median Rent: $889 (11th best)
Unemployment Rate: 538.1% (13th best)
Crime Rank: 12th best
More on Frankfort: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Kentucky State University

How'd we figure out the best college towns in Kentucky?

To crunch our data on Kentucky's best college towns, we used Saturday Night Science to decide which qualities (or rankings) make sense to use in the data, and then crunch the numbers for our rankings.

First off, we firmly decided that only cities with a 4 year college should make the cut -- so there has to be at least one college granting bachelors degrees in town.

You might be surprised to hear that there are only 16 places in Kentucky with an institution of higher learning with that criteria.

Source of data include OpenStreetMaps, the College Scorecard, the U.S. Census, and FBI reporting data to include the following factors:

  • Students Make Up Large % of the Population
  • College-specific Factors
    • Graduation rate
    • Tuition Cost
    • Student Body Diversity
  • Town Characteristics
    • Safety
    • Affordability
    • Income and Employment Opportunities
  • Things to Do
    • Bars
    • Museums & Libraries
    • Population Density

We ranked each city across each of the criteria, with one being the best.

We rolled up the individual scores into the category and ranked them again based on the category.

Finally, we took the average rank across each category, with the city posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title "Best College Town In Kentucky For 2024." We updated this article for 2024. This is our six time ranking the best college towns in Kentucky.

And it looks like Highland Heights placed Summa Cum Laude.

There You Have It -- The Best College Towns In The Kentucky

If you're looking for the best college towns in Kentucky, you came to the right place.

The best college towns in Kentucky are Highland Heights, Murray, Berea, Wilmore, Morehead, Williamsburg, Owensboro, Danville, Richmond, and Frankfort.

These places all have great college sports programs, tons of stuff to do, and are great places to raise a family.

For more reading, check out:

16 Best College Towns In Kentucky

Rank City Population
1 Highland Heights, KY 6566
2 Murray, KY 17414
3 Berea, KY 15404
4 Wilmore, KY 6017
5 Morehead, KY 7001
6 Williamsburg, KY 5229
7 Owensboro, KY 60019
8 Danville, KY 17191
9 Richmond, KY 34883
10 Frankfort, KY 28460
11 Lexington, KY 321276
12 Campbellsville, KY 11434
13 Pikeville, KY 7563
14 Louisville, KY 629176
15 Georgetown, KY 37510
16 Florence, KY 32056

Best College Towns By State

Enjoy The Snack?