Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,502, settled in 1860.
Salyersville’s best subject grade is an A for safety; its weakest is a D− for incomes. 58% of residents live below the poverty line in Salyersville, above both Kentucky’s towns (16%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). On incomes, just 3 of Kentucky’s 236 towns do worse. On CDC estimates, its residents' health ranks in the bottom 2% nationally. Salyersville has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Judge D. W. Gardner House and Salyersville Bank. Salyersville has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Salyersville beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| Widest gap | Salyersville | KY |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 36.3% | 18.9% |
1,883 counted in 2010 and 1,591 in 2020; an estimated 1,502 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Salyersville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 106 in 1870, 1,591 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1951 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Salyersville, 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 Salyersville.
Of the 142 Kentucky towns we compare, none has a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Salyersville. In Salyersville, just over a third of adults say their health is fair or poor, against 23% in Kentucky’s towns and 19% across U.S. towns. 26% of Salyersville adults smoke cigarettes. The town does better than the Kentucky average on 2 of 31 CDC measures and worse on 22.
| Salyersville | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 23% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 18% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Salyersville | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11% | 14.2% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 84.3% | 81.3% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 36.3% | 18.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Magoffin County school district runs its public schools. One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salyersville Grade SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 479 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KY on state tests and graduation
Salyersville’s property crime rate stands at 0.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Salyersville | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.7 per 1,000 residents | 8.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.7 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
No town among the 143 in Kentucky we compare has a lower middle household income than Salyersville. The share of working residents in Salyersville who work locally: 25%. Employers in Salyersville shed 340 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 1,212. The top destinations are Prestonsburg (6%), Lexington (6%) and Paintsville (5%).
| Salyersville | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $21,000 | $60,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 15% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Salyersville’s typical rent comes in at $693 a month. In the year to September 2026, typical home values slipped 21%. 52% of households own their home locally.
| Salyersville | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 52% | 59% | 73% |
| Median rent | $693 a month | $934 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
In Salyersville, the FEMA hazard score is 85 of 100. Since 1978, Salyersville has seen 123 flood insurance claims paid out. FEMA puts 82% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 5% to wildfires. Also worth knowing: households in the town have drawn federal disaster aid in 16 declared disasters, most recently in 2025.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Expect July afternoons of 87° and January nights of 25°, with about 23 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Trails run 1.3 miles in 2 parks and preserves. Ramey Memorial Park, at 22 acres with 1.1 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. For Salyersville, the concentration of trails is 0.5 miles per square mile.
| Salyersville | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.1% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Ramey Memorial Park | 1.1 mi | 22 |
| 2. Salyersville City Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Salyersville. Close and well known come first.
30 mi Canyon & gorgeRed River Gorge
35 mi State parkNatural Bridge State Resort Park
12 mi MuseumMountain Homeplace
14 mi MuseumU.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum
in town MuseumMagoffin County Pioneer Village and Museum16 mi MuseumEast Kentucky Science CenterRed River Gorge: Robert G. Davis, NWSRS, Public domain · Natural Bridge State Resort Park: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Mountain Homeplace: J654567, CC BY-SA 3.0 · U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum: J654567, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Magoffin County Pioneer Village and Museum: FloNight (Sydney Poore) and Russell Poore, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Salyersville; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Salyersville residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
Where Salyersville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Kentucky, United States
Salyersville () is a home rule-class city on the Licking River in Magoffin County, Kentucky, United States. It is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,591, down from 1,883 in 2010.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 3.5 years of the area's median household income ($33,080 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
2 notable people were born here, including Jimmy Flynt and Ben Moore.
