Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Dayton grades B overall, 44th of 138 graded towns in Kentucky, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its public schools beat 87% of Kentucky towns on state tests and graduation and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 94% of U.S. towns. On the other side, FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 78% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. On the outdoors, just 1 of Kentucky’s 238 towns do better. Dayton has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Doyle Country Club and Dayton High School. 4.3% of working residents work locally in Dayton, against 15% in Kentucky’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns.
Where Dayton beats most towns.
6.8% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Dayton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,749 in 1870, a peak of 9,071 in 1930, 5,666 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 6 maps from 1898 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Dayton. Close and well known come first.
3 mi Stadium & arenaPaycor Stadium
3 mi Stadium & arenaGreat American Ball Park
Big draw19 mi Theme parkKings Island3.5M visitors a year
3 mi Stadium & arenaNippert Stadium
3 mi Stadium & arenaTQL Stadium
Big draw35 mi Theme parkArk EncounterPaycor Stadium: JonRidinger, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Great American Ball Park: Eric Kilby profile at Flickr website, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Kings Island: Eli Duke from Portland, OR, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nippert Stadium: Ben Levin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · TQL Stadium: Cornfield948, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ark Encounter: OlinEJ, CC0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dayton, and how to reach them.
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 Dayton.
Dayton sends many workers across the state line and has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Kentucky (mostly inland flooding).
Its A for the outdoors ranks #1 of 142 in Kentucky.
1.6 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. Dayton’s trail density is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Dayton | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.8% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sargeant Park | 0.9 mi | 16 |
| 2. Gil Lynn Park | 0.1 mi | 6 |
| 3. Monument Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Dayton Independent school district. Its two schools are below. The largest public high school is Dayton High School, with 358 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 453 | C− |
| Dayton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 358 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KY on state tests and graduation
Dayton beats the Kentucky average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of adults smoke cigarettes in Dayton.
| Dayton | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Dayton | KY |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 6.9% | 5.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
36% of working residents cross a state line to work. Dayton has 772 jobs for its 2,829 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Dayton for work: only 4% work in town. Jobs based in Dayton fell to 772 in 2023, 45 fewer than in 2013. 16% of Dayton residents live below the poverty line.
| Dayton | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 13% | 10% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $59,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 83% of Kentucky towns, with expected losses of about $326 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1978, 76 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Dayton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Dayton has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 24° and about 16 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 2.5 years of the Cincinnati metro’s $81K median household income, the typical home (about $199K) costs less against local pay than in 91% of Kentucky towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living. 57.5% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 45.4% across Kentucky.
The typical Dayton home is worth about $199,000, down 1.1% in a year, 14% below the Kentucky typical home.
| Dayton | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 57% | 59% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,137 a month | $930 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Adults 35 to 64 are 42% of residents (38% statewide). Dayton has grown 5.5% since 2020, to 5,974 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 23% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 28% across Kentucky.
| Dayton | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 17% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 21% | 22% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 23% | 26% | 29% |
| Median age | 39.6 years | 37.6 years | 40.5 years |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.5 points. Across Kentucky, 50.5% of residents are women.
| Dayton | KY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.5% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.9% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.9% | 13.1% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.2% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.8% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.6% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.6% | 11.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 40.3% | 32.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.2% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.9% | 9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.3% | 16.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.6% | 11.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
19 within 15 miles of the center of Dayton
About 4 of every 100 Dayton residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
Where Dayton’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
4 places in Dayton on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Dayton.
City in Kentucky, United States
The City of Dayton, Kentucky, is a home rule-class city along a bend of the Ohio River in Campbell County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 5,666 at the 2020 census. It is less than 3 miles (5 km) from downtown Cincinnati, Ohio.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Dayton.
| Town | KY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dayton | #44 | B | B | B | A | C− |
| Fort Thomas | #3 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ | A |
| Bellevue | #54 | B− | B− | B | D− | B |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Dayton grades B overall, better than 63% of U.S. towns and #44 of 138 in Kentucky. It grades C− for health, B for safety and A for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 2.5 years of the area's median household income ($81,120 across the Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
17 notable people were born here, including Robert Agnew and Albert Berry.
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