Bartenders · SOC 35-3011
Bartenders Salary in the Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area
Figures describe the Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area, a BLS-defined region outside metropolitan areas — not a single city or town.
Bartenders in the Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area earned a median of $25,690 per year ($12.35 per hour) as of the May 2025 BLS OEWS estimates. Pay ranged from $15,080 at the 10th percentile to $55,440 at the 90th. BLS estimates 440 people work in this occupation in the area.
Pay distribution
Half of Bartenders in the Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area earn more than $25,690 per year, half earn less; the middle half earn between $17,150 and $35,200.
| Wage | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual | $15,080 | $17,150 | $25,690 | $35,200 | $55,440 |
| Hourly | $7.25 | $8.24 | $12.35 | $16.93 | $26.65 |
A percentile is a cut point: 25% of workers in this occupation and area earn less than the 25th-percentile wage. The median is the 50th percentile — half earn less, half earn more.
How this area compares
- Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area$25,690 median for Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area; middle half earns $17,150 to $35,200
- Kentuckystate$28,780 median for Kentucky; middle half earns $17,920 to $45,770
- United Statesnational$34,340 median for United States; middle half earns $27,400 to $47,570
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
The median here is −11% vs Kentucky overall and −25% vs the U.S. median for this occupation.
Other metro areas in Kentucky
Metro areas in the same state with published May 2025 medians for bartenders, highest first. Areas without published estimates are not listed.
- Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan areathis page$25,690 median for Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area; middle half earns $17,150 to $35,200
- $30,640 median for Lexington metro area; middle half earns $17,670 to $47,540
- $29,120 median for Louisville/Jefferson County metro area; middle half earns $20,430 to $45,770
- $26,810 median for Owensboro metro area; middle half earns $16,390 to $46,700
- $26,800 median for Bowling Green metro area; middle half earns $16,310 to $38,580
- $26,620 median for Elizabethtown metro area; middle half earns $16,210 to $47,300
- $26,350 median for Paducah metro area; middle half earns $16,410 to $33,530
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
Keep exploring
Other occupations in the same SOC group with published medians here, largest employment first:
Highest-paying metro areas for bartenderss · Highest-paying occupations in Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area
About this estimate
These figures are survey estimates from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program — modeled from employer reports collected over three years and benchmarked to May 2025. They describe what employers in this area currently pay across all industries, not what any individual worker will be offered.
Employment counts wage-and-salary jobs in the occupation (self-employed workers are excluded). Estimates carry sampling error; percentile wages are rounded by BLS. Some values are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality or quality — suppressed values appear here as “not published”, never as zero. Read the full methodology.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.