Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,048, settled in 1916.
The best of Wheelwright’s subject grades are an A+ for safety and an A for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for health. 41% of residents live below the poverty line in Wheelwright, above both Kentucky’s towns (16%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 1 of Kentucky’s 180 towns score higher on safety. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 86% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. On the outdoors, just 5 of Kentucky’s 238 towns do worse. Wheelwright's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 95% of U.S. towns. Wheelwright Commercial District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Wheelwright has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Wheelwright beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Wheelwright is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 506 in 1920, a peak of 2,037 in 1950, 509 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1946 and 4 maps from 1916 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Wheelwright, 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 Wheelwright.
Wheelwright’s median rent is $593 a month, below both the Kentucky town median ($934 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Typical home values fell 24% in the year to September 2026. 73% of Wheelwright households own their home.
| Wheelwright | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $593 a month | $934 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
The property crime rate in Wheelwright is 0 per 1,000 residents. Only 6 of the 116 Kentucky towns we compare have a lower violent crime rate than Wheelwright. Wheelwright reports less crime per resident than 100% of the U.S. towns and cities we grade.
| Wheelwright | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 8.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Wheelwright beats the Kentucky average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 23. 33% of adults say their health is fair or poor in Wheelwright. No town among the 142 in Kentucky we compare has a higher share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Wheelwright.
| Wheelwright | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 23% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 18% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 15% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 47% | 40% | 36% |
| What stands out | Wheelwright | KY |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 34% | 18.9% |
| More uninsured adults | 9.5% | 5.4% |
| More adults with COPD | 15.9% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Since 1998, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Wheelwright.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Wheelwright for work: only 0% work in town. Wheelwright’s average trip to work is 36 minutes. The top destinations are Prestonsburg (14%), Pikeville (8%) and Lexington (6%).
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Wheelwright has chilly winters and warm summers. Only 8 of the 143 Kentucky towns we compare have a lower July high than Wheelwright.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
3 within 15 miles of the center of Wheelwright
About 5 of every 100 Wheelwright residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Kentucky.
Where Wheelwright’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Kentucky, United States
Wheelwright is a home rule-class city in Floyd County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 509 at the 2020 census, down from 780 in 2010 and 1,042 in 2000.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
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.