ZIP code
40509
in Lexington, KentuckyPopulation 47,036
56.02/ 100
Ranked #8,256 of 32,066 US ZIPs (top 26%)
Ranked #32 of 742 Kentucky ZIPs (top 4.4%)
Ranked #8 of 25 Lexington-Fayette, KY ZIPs (top 32%)
Ranks are modeled estimates — ZIPs a few hundred places apart are effectively tied.
Some domains have limited local data — read this Score as directional
What defines this ZIP
Metrics where this ZIP sits in the tails of the national distribution — the ones that most set it apart. Select any tile for its definition and methodology.
Expected annual disaster loss
$0
in the top 3.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS97thDefinition & source ›
FEMA’s modeled estimate, in dollars per year, of the average harm to people expected from natural hazards — an annualized average, not a forecast for any single year.
Full methodology ›Mental-health provider access
0.2 per 1,000 residents
in the top 4.2% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST94thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The number of mental-health clinics located inside this ZIP’s boundary, per 1,000 residents.
Counted from establishments located inside this ZIP’s boundary, so one just across the line is not counted. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the density to be reliable, no value is published rather than an unreliable one.
Full methodology ›Lead in tap water
0 ppb
at the national minimum
Lower is healthier
US1stDefinition & source ›
The lead level at the 90th percentile of tap-water samples reported by the public water systems serving this ZIP, in parts per billion — the EPA requires action above 15 ppb.
Measured from EPA records for the public water systems that serve this ZIP. Households on private wells — roughly 30% of the US population — are not covered by this measure, and this figure says nothing about their water.
Full methodology ›Physician access
2.5 per 1,000 residents
in the top 4.7% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST98thUS95thDefinition & source ›
The number of physicians’ offices located inside this ZIP’s boundary, per 1,000 residents.
Counted from establishments located inside this ZIP’s boundary, so one just across the line is not counted. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the density to be reliable, no value is published rather than an unreliable one.
Full methodology ›Outpatient-care access
0.56 per 1,000 residents
in the top 6.2% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST94thUS94thDefinition & source ›
The number of outpatient clinics located inside this ZIP’s boundary, per 1,000 residents.
Counted from establishments located inside this ZIP’s boundary, so one just across the line is not counted. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the density to be reliable, no value is published rather than an unreliable one.
Full methodology ›Subsidized affordable housing
334 units
in the top 7.3% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST97thUS93rdDefinition & source ›
The number of affordable rental units in this ZIP supported by the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.
Full methodology ›Dental provider access
0.9 per 1,000 residents
in the top 8.6% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST95thUS91stDefinition & source ›
The number of dental offices located inside this ZIP’s boundary, per 1,000 residents.
Counted from establishments located inside this ZIP’s boundary, so one just across the line is not counted. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the density to be reliable, no value is published rather than an unreliable one.
Full methodology ›Loud transportation noise
1.7%
in the top 9.2% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST90thUS91stDefinition & source ›
The modeled share of residents exposed to average road, rail, and aviation noise at or above 65 decibels — around the volume of normal conversation.
Full methodology ›Natural-disaster risk
in the top 12.0% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST93rdUS88thDefinition & source ›
This area’s national rank on its single highest non-flood natural hazard — such as wildfire, tornado, or earthquake — in FEMA’s modeled National Risk Index; flooding is shown separately.
Full methodology ›Energy-cost burden
1.8%
in the bottom 9.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST3rdUS10thDefinition & source ›
The modeled share of household income spent on home energy bills — electricity, gas, and heating fuels.
A modeled share of household income spent on home energy. Estimates that hit the model’s 100% ceiling are suppressed rather than published, because at that point the figure reflects the model’s limit rather than a measured burden.
Full methodology ›The read
On the data available so far, ZIP 40509, one of several in Lexington, Kentucky lands in the top 26% healthiest ZIPs nationally (8,256th) and the top 4.4% of Kentucky (32nd), based on limited data; treat as directional.
The available readings suggest a handful of things about this area: mental-health providers lies in the top 4.2% nationally, and lead in tap water is at the national minimum. Physicians registers in the top 4.7% nationally. Distance to an emergency room lies at the national minimum, shared with about 11% of ZIPs. Outpatient is in the top 6.2% nationally, subsidized affordable housing registers in the top 7.3% nationally, and dental providers lies in the top 8.6% nationally. Distance to a community health center is at the national minimum, shared with about 23% of ZIPs. By contrast, modeled expected annual loss registers in the top 3.5% nationally, and loud transportation noise lies in the top 9.2% nationally.
Against its neighbors, park land runs far lower than the surrounding ZIPs on this measure. For context, expected annual loss is FEMA's modeled estimate, in dollars, of average yearly harm to people from natural hazards. Lead in tap water is the EPA trigger, 15 parts per billion in tap samples, above which a water system must act on lead. Subsidized affordable housing is the main federal tax-credit program (HUD) funding affordable rental housing, counted as local units it supports. The closest ZIP that ranks healthier overall is ZIP 40502, just across the boundary.
What’s driving this score
Nine domains make up the ZipVitals Score — here is how this ZIP does on each, and how much each one counts.
Compared with the ZIP codes measured across all nine scoring domains — not with all US ZIP codes.
Lifting this score
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 89%
19%
Preventive CarePartial
healthier than 68%
15%
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 77%
6%
Healthcare Access
in the top 0.00%
6%
Holding it back
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 29%
16%
Not placed: Chronic Disease Burden and Risk Behavior — too little of each is measured here to compare reliably. They still count toward the score (together 38% of it); we just will not publish a standing we cannot stand behind.
No data: Mental Health and Disability — not measured in this ZIP, so it is left out of the score entirely rather than estimated.
Lifting this score
Social Need / SDOH
in the top 0.00%
19%
Preventive CarePartial
in the top 0.00%
15%
Climate / Disaster Risk
in the top 0.00%
6%
Healthcare Access
in the top 0.00%
6%
About typical
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 55%
16%
Nothing measured is holding this score back.
Not placed: Chronic Disease Burden and Risk Behavior — too little of each is measured here to compare reliably. They still count toward the score (together 38% of it); we just will not publish a standing we cannot stand behind.
No data: Mental Health and Disability — not measured in this ZIP, so it is left out of the score entirely rather than estimated.
“Share” is how much of this ZIP’s score the domain accounts for. Percentages are rounded; higher is healthier in every domain. How the score works, and who it compares you with ›
Findings that name this ZIP
One of our published findings lists this ZIP code. Each finding compares one published measure against a stated benchmark, and names only the ZIP codes whose estimates are reliable enough to rank. See all surprising findings.
Above its nearby ZIPs
The ZIP codes that outlive their neighbors
Estimated life expectancy is 79.8 ± 1.5 years. The 45 nearest ZIP codes with estimates average 76.2 years — 3.6 years above them.
Ranked #492 of the 3,687 ZIP codes this finding names, ordered by years above the nearby-ZIP average, highest first.
Nearby & similar ZIPs
Editorially selected — see how this ZIP compares to nearby and similar places.
Nearby
40391
Kentuckyshares a border
Score 44.15
Closest healthier
40502
Kentuckyshares a border
Score 59.20
Similar health profile
53142
Wisconsin97% similar profile
Score 56.87
How these were chosen: only ZIPs with a published Score appear — a nearby ZIP with too little data to score won’t. Nearby means closest by distance between ZIP boundaries, which can cross state lines. A similar health profile is a close match across the nine Score domains, not similar demographics. Distances are measured between ZIP boundaries — ZIPs that touch share a border. How distance is measured
Evidence
Every measure this page draws on, by source. Collapsed by default — the full data stays in the page for search engines either way.
Health OutcomesCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years | 11.7% | 9.6–13.9 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 67.9% | 63.1–72.4 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 66.1% | 62.9–69.2 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 75.5% | 67.7–82.1 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Short sleep duration among adults | 37.2% | 31.7–42.8 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | KY median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 8.4% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 17.1% (4.6–39.2%) n=747 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 7.9% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 6.9% (0.0–16.5%) n=741 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 6.0% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 13.7% (3.8–29.1%) n=748 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 57.4% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 14.8% (1.5–33.6%) n=748 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 3.5% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 3.8% (0.0–11.2%) n=733 |
| Households without a vehicle | 4.6% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 4.6% (0.0–15.0%) n=745 |
| Broadband subscription | 94.5% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 86.7% (71.5–97.1%) n=745 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 28.0% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 20.9% (6.2–34.7%) n=745 |
| Homeownership rate | 60.7% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 78.0% (58.2–96.7%) n=745 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 1.8% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 0.7% (0.0–4.8%) n=745 |
| Foreign-born population | 14.6% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 0.3% (0.0–5.4%) n=749 |
| Single-parent households | 41.0% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 52.0% (34.7–75.0%) n=738 |
| Population 65+ | 13.4% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 18.2% (9.6–29.6%) n=749 |
| Median age | 35.8 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 41.8 yr (32.3–53.9) n=738 |
| Median household income | $94,804 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $57,097 ($34,611–$87,693) n=645 |
| Median home value | $366,300 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $144,600 ($66,860–$265,120) n=643 |
| Median gross rent | $1,394 | $1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670 | $821 ($592–$1,170) n=466 |
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | KY median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 79.8 yr ± 0.78 | 78.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,308 | 74.8 yr (71.5–78.1) n=739 |
About the ± — it’s this estimate’s give-or-take (statisticians call it the standard error). The true life expectancy for this ZIP most likely falls within 0.78 years of 79.8, and it’s very unlikely to be off by more than twice that.
More ZIPs to explore ▾More ZIPs to explore ▴
How these lists were built: they draw only from ZIPs that have a published Score, so ZIPs with too little data to score are not listed. Distance-based lists use distance between ZIP boundaries with no state filter, so an out-of-state ZIP can appear. Statistically similar means a close match across the nine Score domains, not a demographic match: the measure is the cosine similarity between two ZIPs’ domain scores, taken over the domains both ZIPs have data for and only where that overlap covers at least six of the nine — and where no ZIP clears that minimum-overlap floor, that list is left out rather than filled with a weak match. How distance is measured