Kentucky Electric Vehicles jobs: 2,954 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, Kentucky employs 2,954 people in the electric vehicles sector — about 2% of the U.S. total. That makes Kentucky the 11th-largest state for electric vehicles jobs nationwide.
Electric Vehicles Jobs in Kentucky (2024)
National share: 1.99% of all U.S. electric vehicles jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
Kentucky ranks 11th out of 51 U.S. states in electric vehicles employment. At 2,954 workers, the state sits above the 25th-ranked Oregon’s tally by 1,841 jobs, and trails the national leader California by 46,012 electric vehicles workers.
1.1 Kentucky’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The electric vehicles sector nationwide employs roughly 148,277 workers; Kentucky accounts for 2,954 of them.
1.3 Where Kentucky sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 25,562 | #28 |
| Electric Vehicles | 2,954 | #11 |
| Solar | 2,268 | #31 |
| Storage & Grid | 822 | #31 |
| Wind | 298 | #47 |
| Hydropower | 154 | #37 |
| Clean Fuels | 142 | #34 |
| Nuclear | 122 | #33 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in Kentucky
Every electric vehicles-related sub-category reported for Kentucky in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in Kentucky
Kentucky contributes 1.99% of the nation’s electric vehicles workforce. Within Kentucky’s own clean-energy economy, electric vehicles accounts for 9.1% of total clean-energy jobs (2,954 of 32,322 workers).
Cost-of-living in Kentucky is roughly 10.7% lower the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for electric vehicles roles in Kentucky is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | Kentucky-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineering Technician (EV) | $66,940 | $59,777 | 3 |
| Automotive Service Technician (EV) | $47,770 | $42,659 | 3 |
See all 2 electric vehicles occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
Kentucky employers rate 20.9% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 26.6% as “somewhat difficult”) — on par with the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 47.5% of Kentucky’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.
4.1 Employer hiring difficulty
4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group
| Industry (NAICS group) | Jobs (2024) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 78,131 |
| Construction | 20,948 |
| Other Services | 13,174 |
| Trade | 11,333 |
| Professional Services | 9,708 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 8,485 |
| Utilities | 7,670 |
| Mining and Extraction | 6,045 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 558 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.
Last updated: April 2026.