Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Public schools that outperform most of Kentucky.
Burlington’s strongest is schools — its schools rank ahead of 92% of Kentucky towns. Overall, Burlington earns an A: better than 92% of U.S. towns, and 15th of 138 in Kentucky. It also does well on incomes: the median household earns $109K. The catch is walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 62% of U.S. towns. A typical home there costs about $330K, 4.1 years of the Cincinnati metro’s $81K median household income. The town has 6 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Robert Chambers House and Burlington Historic District. England-Idlewild Park, at 219 acres with 3.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · National Register of Historic Places · OpenStreetMap.
Where Burlington beats most towns.
Census counts: 10,779 in 2000, 17,318 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1933 and 6 maps from 1914 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Burlington is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Burlington. Close and well known come first.
Big draw29 mi Theme parkArk Encounter
12 mi Stadium & arenaPaycor Stadium
6 mi MuseumCreation Museum1.2M visitors a year
Big draw33 mi Theme parkKings Island3.5M visitors a year
13 mi Stadium & arenaGreat American Ball Park
13 mi Stadium & arenaNippert StadiumArk Encounter: OlinEJ, CC0 · Paycor Stadium: JonRidinger, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Creation Museum: Creashin at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Kings Island: Eli Duke from Portland, OR, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Great American Ball Park: Eric Kilby profile at Flickr website, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nippert Stadium: Ben Levin, CC BY-SA 4.0
Burlington is unincorporated, so Boone County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Burlington.
Burlington has less tooth loss than most of Kentucky and has household incomes well above the Kentucky norm.
The public schools here belong to the Boone County school district. One of its 5 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. 4 public schools serve Burlington, with 2,108 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burlington Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 689 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KY on state tests and graduation
5.2 miles of trail wind through 7 parks and preserves. In Burlington, the trail network density is 0.6 miles per square mile, against 0.3 in Kentucky’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns.
| Burlington | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.8% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. England-Idlewild Park | 3.9 mi | 219 |
| 2. Gunpowder Creek Nature Park | 0.3 mi | 74 |
| 3. Boone County Fairgrounds | — | 47 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
In Burlington, the median rent is $1,489 a month, above both Kentucky’s towns ($930 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). A typical home here is worth about $330,000, up 3% in a year, 43% above the Kentucky typical home. On the market in the town: a median 10 days to sell.
| Burlington | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,489 a month | $930 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 59% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Only 10 of the 142 Kentucky towns we compare have a higher median household income than Burlington. Most working residents leave Burlington for work: only 4% work in town. Burlington: 5.5% of residents live below the poverty line. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs locally rose by 524, to 3,003.
| Burlington | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $109,000 | $59,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 5.5% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.3% | 15% | 8% |
| Work from home | 13% | 10% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Kentucky is tooth loss: 10.9% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 18.9% statewide. Against the 7,246 U.S. towns with household incomes like Burlington’s, it is less healthy than 55%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
The share of adults in Burlington who had a checkup this year: 78%. Against the Kentucky average, Burlington comes out ahead on 16 CDC measures out of 31, and behind on 1. In Burlington, 12% of adults report frequent physical distress, and 20% get no exercise outside work. Only 9 of the 141 Kentucky towns we compare have a higher share of adults who binge drink than Burlington.
| Burlington | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 27% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 23% | 19% |
| What stands out | Burlington | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 10.9% | 18.9% |
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 2.8% | 4% |
| More binge drinkers | 17.7% | 14.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 23° and about 23 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FEMA puts 32% of Burlington’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 29% to cold waves. On expected storm and flood damage, Burlington sits below 67% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in the town since 2009.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The median household earns $109,308, against $63,726 across Kentucky, one input to its A for jobs and income.
Adults 35 to 64 are 43% of residents (38% statewide); people 65 and older are 13% of residents (17% statewide). Among adults 25 and older, 32% have a four-year degree or more, against 28% across Kentucky.
| Burlington | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 13% | 17% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 32% | 26% | 29% |
| Median age | 37.7 years | 37.6 years | 40.5 years |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.8 points. Across Kentucky, 50.5% of residents are women.
| Burlington | KY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.6% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.5% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.8% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.4% | 13.1% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.8% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.7% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.2% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.8% | 11.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 32.5% | 32.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.1% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.9% | 9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.7% | 16.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.1% | 11.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
11 within 15 miles of the center of Burlington
About 8 of every 100 Burlington residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
Where Burlington’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
6 places in Burlington on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Burlington.
Census-designated place in Boone County, Kentucky, United States
Burlington is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Boone County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 17,318 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Burlington.
| Town | KY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burlington | #15 | A | B− | — | A | B+ |
| Oakbrook | #20 | A | B− | — | A | B |
| Hebron | #13 | A | B+ | — | A | B− |
Burlington, Oakbrook and Hebron report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Burlington with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Burlington grades A overall, better than 92% of U.S. towns and #15 of 138 in Kentucky. It grades B+ for health and A for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
3 notable people were born here, including Arthur B. Rouse and Phil Clark.
