Groundwork

Health care · County · Kentucky

Optometrists and eye clinics in Whitley County, KY

How Whitley County, KY compares with other counties and the U.S. for optometrists and eye clinics: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 14 out of 100: Low

Ranked #1,256 of 1,302 scored counties
#31 of 38 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
9
2 chain locations (22%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$12.3M
On medical and dental services · $906 a household
Spending per listing
$1.4M
56% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
6.6
61% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
37,297
+1.6% since 2020

See the optometrists and eye clinics around any address in Whitley County

The site report maps the optometrists and eye clinics on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Whitley County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Whitley County scores 14 (low) on the Groundwork market score for optometrists and eye clinics, ranking #1,256 of 1,302 scored counties and #31 of 38 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 9 optometrists and eye clinics in Whitley County. Of those, 2 are chain locations, or 22%, against 20% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 6.6, 61% above the U.S. rate of 4.1.

Household spending on medical and dental services in Whitley County comes to about $12.3M a year: $906 per household, 30% below the U.S. average. Spread across 9 optometrists and eye clinics, that is $1.4M per practice, 56% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. That spending covers all medical and dental services, which optometrists and eye clinics share with other businesses in the trade.

There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as offices of optometrists in Whitley County: counts under 3 aren’t published. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Whitley County grew 1.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Whitley County compares

The same measures for Kentucky and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the optometrists and eye clinics counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Optometrists and eye care in Whitley County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureWhitley CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households6.64.14.1
Spending per listing$1.4M$2.6M$3.1M
Households per official establishmentn/a6,6225,742
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−5.8%+0.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.6%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on medical and dental services$906$1,042$1,288
Median household income$44,615$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score1430

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
92 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
4The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of optometrists in Whitley County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Whitley County

Population, 2025 estimate
37,297+1.6% since 2020
Households
13,541
Median age
35.4
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
438 sq. mi.
People per square mile
84
Median household income
$44,615+14.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$63,305
Median home value
$131,800
Jobs located here
13,221
Daytime population
37,057Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Whitley County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the optometrists and eye clinics on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Whitley County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Optometrists and eye care across Kentucky

Every Kentucky market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Kentucky for optometrists and eye clinics, numbered among those based in Kentucky, with Whitley County marked.

Top counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky ranked for optometrists and eye clinics by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Oldham County, KY7483.5$4.1M+4.9%#138 of 1,302
2Warren County, KY71173.1$3.4M+10.6%#191 of 1,302
3Bullitt County, KY6582.5$4.5M+5.0%#294 of 1,302
4Madison County, KY62123.2$3.2M+9.4%#374 of 1,302
5Shelby County, KY5873.8$3M+6.2%#476 of 1,302
6Jessamine County, KY5573.5$3.2M+7.8%#557 of 1,302
7Kenton County, KY55314.6$2.5M+3.9%#568 of 1,302
8Jefferson County, KY461624.9$2.2M+1.6%#783 of 1,302
9Fayette County, KY44674.8$2.3M+2.2%#827 of 1,302
10Boone County, KY44295.7$2.2M+6.5%#828 of 1,302
31Whitley County, KY1496.6$1.4M+1.6%#1,256 of 1,302

Other business types in Whitley County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many optometrists and eye clinics are in Whitley County, KY?

Whitley County has 9 optometrists and eye clinics on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count optometrists and eye clinics. No official count is published for offices of optometrists in Whitley County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Whitley County, KY spend on medical and dental services?

About $12.3M a year, or $906 per household. That is 30% below the U.S. average (an index of 70, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 optometrists and eye clinics on map listings, it comes to $1.4M per practice. The spending figure covers all medical and dental services, not only optometrists and eye clinics. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,541 households in Whitley County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Whitley County, KY compare with the U.S. for optometrists and eye clinics?

Whitley County has 6.6 optometrists and eye clinics per 10,000 households, 61% above the U.S. rate of 4.1. Spending per practice is $1.4M, 56% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of optometrists and eye clinics to household spending, Whitley County would have about 4, against 9 on map listings.

How fast is Whitley County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Whitley County at 37,297 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 13,541 households. The median household income in Whitley County is $44,615 a year, 45% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 14.4% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Whitley County scores 14 for optometrists and eye clinics (low), #1,256 of 1,302 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Whitley County. It maps the optometrists and eye clinics on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for optometrists and eye clinics · All 56 business types in Whitley County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Whitley County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Whitley County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.