Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Few places in the country grade higher. Highland Heights earns an A+, 2nd of 138 graded towns in Kentucky. Its schools rank ahead of 92% of Kentucky towns, homes are within reach, about $204K for a typical one, or 2.5 years of the Cincinnati metro’s $81K median household income, and it is healthier than 77% of U.S. towns. Its lowest mark, a B−, is in incomes. Only 1 of Kentucky’s 237 towns score higher on walkability. Highland Heights is home to Northern Kentucky University. Only 9 of Kentucky’s 238 towns score higher on hazard risk.
Where Highland Heights beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Highland Heights is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 625 in 1930, 6,662 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 2019 and 6 maps from 1898 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Highland Heights. Close and well known come first.
5 mi Stadium & arenaPaycor Stadium
5 mi Stadium & arenaGreat American Ball Park
Big draw23 mi Theme parkKings Island3.5M visitors a year
Big draw30 mi Theme parkArk Encounter
7 mi Stadium & arenaNippert Stadium
6 mi Stadium & arenaTQL StadiumPaycor 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 · Ark Encounter: OlinEJ, CC0 · Nippert Stadium: Ben Levin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · TQL Stadium: Cornfield948, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Highland Heights, 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 Highland Heights.
Highland Heights pairs an A+ overall with homes cheaper than the Kentucky norm, is shaped by its college students and carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of Kentucky (mostly inland flooding).
1.9 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Highland Heights’ trail density is 0.7 miles per square mile, where Kentucky’s towns sit at 0.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4.
| Highland Heights | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lakeside Commons Park and Gardens | 0.6 mi | 6 |
| 2. City of Highland Heights Park | 0.2 mi | 5 |
| 3. Highland Heights Veterans Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 94% of Kentucky towns; that rating is what its A− for hazard risk is built on.
Highland Heights’ FEMA risk score is 17 of 100, below both Kentucky’s towns (48 of 100) and U.S. towns (44 of 100).
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 6,866 U.S. towns with household incomes like Highland Heights’s, it is healthier than 98%, so its A− isn’t only a matter of income. Its widest gap with Kentucky is stroke: 2.5% of its 5,909 adults have had a stroke, against 4% statewide.
28% of Highland Heights adults have high blood pressure. Only 2 of the 141 Kentucky towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have diabetes than Highland Heights. 32% of Highland Heights adults have obesity.
| Highland Heights | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 38% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 16% |
| What stands out | Highland Heights | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 2.5% | 4% |
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 8.7% | 13.7% |
| More binge drinkers | 17.8% | 14.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Reported crimes fell from 77 to 39 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
The violent crime rate in Highland Heights is 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
| Highland Heights | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.8 per 1,000 residents | 8.3 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Highland Heights has chilly winters and warm summers. 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
23% of working residents cross a state line to work.
Most working residents leave Highland Heights for work: only 4% work in town. 20% of residents live below the poverty line in Highland Heights. The top destinations are Cincinnati (17%), Florence (5%) and Covington (5%).
| Highland Heights | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 20% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.9% | 15% | 8% |
| Work from home | 15% | 10% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Highland Heights grades A+ overall with a typical home of about $204K, below the Kentucky typical value; only 7 of the 30 Kentucky towns graded A− or better can say that. At 2.5 years of the Cincinnati metro’s $81K median household income, the typical home (about $204K) costs less against local pay than in 91% of Kentucky towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living.
The typical Highland Heights home is worth about $204,000, down 0.9% in a year, 12% below the Kentucky typical home.
| Highland Heights | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 63% | 59% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,144 a month | $930 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
16 within 15 miles of the center of Highland Heights
College town 27 of every 100 Highland Heights residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
City in Kentucky, United States
Highland Heights is a home rule-class city in Campbell County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 6,662 at the 2020 census. Highland Heights is home to Northern Kentucky University and General Cable, a Fortune 500 company whose present headquarters were constructed in 1992. It is located in the Cincinnati metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Highland Heights.
At #2 in KY, it grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Fort Thomas (A+) comes closest.
| Town | KY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highland Heights | #2 | A+ | A | B+ | A | A− |
| Fort Thomas | #3 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ | A |
| Cold Spring | #27 | A− | B− | B− | A | B− |
| Wilder | #22 | A | B+ | B+ | A | B |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Highland Heights grades A+ overall, among the top 2% of U.S. towns and #2 of 138 in Kentucky. It grades A− for health, B+ for safety and A for schools.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.
.jpg){kind=link}