Benton, Kentucky
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.
4,718
people, the 82nd-largest of Kentucky's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Kentucky's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
89.8%
of 3,118 jobs located in Benton are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 32% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$787
a month. Kentucky's median is $967.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.
A $632 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Marshall County.
- $662 Tract 9501.02
- $1,294 Tract 9501.01
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$865–$1,297
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $787 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
Most of the housing here is older than 2000.
- 80% of all homes were built before 2000
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.1–1.4% to the 2,142 homes here.
3–31
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 24% less than Kentucky's.
$157,000
median home value in Benton.
- $157,000 Benton
- $205,600 Kentucky
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year