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Place dossier plate
SheetKY-STANFORD-KY · Stanford, KY 3,662 pop · income 27th pct · 7 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Stanford
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Stanford on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Prestonsburg · lowest
27,265
Prestonsburg · lowest
27,265 median HH income
18.2% of the leader · rank #1
Stanford · this city
55,000
Stanford · this city
55,000 median HH income
36.7% of the leader · rank #2
Gurley · near
55,000
Gurley · near
55,000 median HH income
36.7% of the leader · rank #3
Brevig Mission · near
55,000
Brevig Mission · near
55,000 median HH income
36.7% of the leader · rank #4
Nikolaevsk · near
55,000
Nikolaevsk · near
55,000 median HH income
36.7% of the leader · rank #5
Perrytown · near
55,000
Perrytown · near
55,000 median HH income
36.7% of the leader · rank #6
Buckner · highest
149,700
Buckner · highest
149,700 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Stanford on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 3,662.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Stanford - the verdict
Stanford ranks in the 27th percentile for household income and the 88th percentile for safety nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
27th
percentile, household income
28th
percentile, home value
10th
percentile, median rent
88th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Stanford, KY
Kentucky's Stanford is a small town, with 3,662 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Stanford households earn a median of $55,000 annually, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 8.0%. Stanford's housing stock carries a median value of $154,000, and the median resident age is 46.6 years. Educational attainment runs 15.9% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 46.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Stanford reports a comparatively low crime rate: per-100,000 total crime stands at 430.8 in FBI UCR data, below the national average (a voluntary reporting program, read this as reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Living costs in Kentucky run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Kentucky scores 90.2 (Well Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $984 per month. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Kentucky run around $225, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. Natural-hazard exposure scores 44.2 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Stanford's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from within-city variation to population change to schools and households to comparison shortlist to work and mobility to housing and income to reported crime; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Stanford, city-specific coverage includes FBI reported-crime rates, annual population history, commute-mode shares, within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count.
No matched row is reported here for local building permits; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Within-city variation
What can 7 Census tracts reveal inside Stanford?
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
Is Stanford growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +112 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +3.1% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 15.9% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
Which cities make useful reference points for Stanford?
Within Kentucky, the closest population matches are Southgate (3,680 residents, $55,469 income); Russell (3,696 residents, $76,389 income); Buckner (3,786 residents, $149,700 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Stonybrook, PA (3,662 residents); Highland Acres, DE (3,661 residents); Cedar Springs, MI (3,661 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Work and mobility
What does the journey to work look like in Stanford?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 82.3%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Public transit
0.0%
Work from home
8.7%
Drive alone
82.3%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 1,374 workers age 16+.
How far does income reach against housing in Stanford?
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 2.8 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 8.0%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
Household income
$55,000
Home value
$154,000
Value / income
2.8×
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Stanford?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 430.8 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 81% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
350.0
Violent rate
80.8
Total reported rate
430.8
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
Below median income · poverty 8.0% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
90.2 (US=100)
Affordable · BEA RPP 2024, Kentucky average
C-
City profile score · Stanford, KY
52/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living A
90.2 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Violent crime B+
81 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Poverty rate D
8.0%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income F
$55,000
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share F
15.9%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Stanford profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 85/100 (A) · 90.2 index
Violent crime: 76/100 (B+) · 81 /100k
Poverty rate: 48/100 (D) · 8.0%
Household income: 27/100 (F) · $55,000
Bachelor's+ share: 23/100 (F) · 15.9%
Where Stanford sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Stanford's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Stanford highlighted among 27 peers.Read the chart values
Stanford, KY (this city): home $154,000, crime 431/100k
Centre, AL : home $166,300, crime 3,745/100k
Southgate, KY : home $175,700, crime 951/100k
Russell, KY : home $207,900, crime 969/100k
Beaver Dam, KY : home $155,800, crime 344/100k
Grayson, KY : home $125,600, crime 2,212/100k
Prestonsburg, KY : home $157,200, crime 491/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Stanford compare to other US cities?
Stanford measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income27% higher than other cities
Home value28% pricier than other cities
Median rent10% pricier than other cities
Safety88% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at Kentucky, Stanford ranks #53 of 181 Kentucky cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Stanford against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Kentucky only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Kentucky-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Stanford near the bottom of Kentucky's cities
Among the 520 Kentucky cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Stanford ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Stanford only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#249 of 485
48th percentile in Kentucky
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 520
0th percentile in Kentucky
Median Home Value
#228 of 484
53rd percentile in Kentucky
Poverty Rate
#320 of 519
38th percentile in Kentucky
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#294 of 520
43rd percentile in Kentucky
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Kentucky only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
27th percentile nationally for median household income · 88th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Stanford's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Stanford's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Stanford's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$154,000Among the most affordablemore affordable than 72% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Stanford's home-value-to-income ratio: 2.8×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#5,597 of 15,516
More affordable than 64% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#4,854 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 2.8×, Stanford sits in the affordable band:
national rank #5,597 of 15,516 and #4,854 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$55,000Stanford, KY median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Stanford, KY median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Stanford, KY.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)15.9%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)8.0%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)46.4%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
3,662
Median Income
$55,000
Median Home Value
$154,000
Median Age
46.6
Poverty Rate
8.0%
Labor force participation
46.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
15.9%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
430.8
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
80.8
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
350.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Stanford's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
3,649 residents
2021
3,606 residents
2022
3,650 residents
2023
3,704 residents
2024
3,727 residents
2025
3,761 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
82.3%
Carpool
3.0%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
5.2%
Work from Home
8.7%
Other
0.8%
Based on 1,374 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Kentucky statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $225
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Kentucky at $225 (electricity about $115 , water and sewer about $40 ).
These are Kentucky statewide averages, not a meter reading for Stanford. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Kentucky's BEA cost-of-living index is 90.2 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Stanford is $984/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Kentucky statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 44.2 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Kentucky statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Stanford sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Stanford compares to similar-size Kentucky cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.