Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-07-01
39 of Kansas's 105 counties — 37% — have no county-wide zoning. That is the 8th-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Cloud County (72/100). Every entry below cites the county’s own official source.
Rules change, and cities inside these counties set their own — treat this as a verified starting point, not legal advice. All 959 counties nationwide → Kansas counties with no building codes → Full Kansas profile →
39 of 105 Kansas counties · sorted by Index score
The official Cloud County site lists no planning or zoning department, indicating the county does not administer county zoning for unincorporated areas.
Cloud County, KS - official county government site ↗No county planning/zoning department is listed; zoning is administered by cities (e.g. Fort Scott), with no county zoning shown for unincorporated areas.
Bourbon County Kansas - Official Site (Departments) ↗The official Gove County departments page lists no planning or zoning department, indicating the rural county does not administer county zoning.
Gove County - Departments (official county site) ↗No county planning or zoning department or ordinance is referenced on the official county site; county zoning could not be confirmed.
Marshall County, Kansas — official county website ↗No zoning or planning office appears among the county's departments; land-use is not zoned at the county level for unincorporated Neosho County.
Neosho County, KS – Departments ↗Brown County has no general countywide zoning; a 2025 Planning Commission proposal would establish only a single zoning district limiting commercial wind energy development, and…
Brown County KS - Forms / Planning Commission ↗No county zoning or planning department appears among the county's official departments; unincorporated Wallace County appears unzoned.
Wallace County, KS - County Departments ↗No county planning or zoning department appears among Washington County's offices; unincorporated areas appear unzoned.
Washington County, KS - County Departments ↗Zoning is administered only by the Colby-Thomas County Metropolitan Area Planning Commission within a three-mile belt around Colby under Kansas extraterritorial zoning law, whic…
Kansas Reflector - three-mile extraterritorial zoning ↗No planning or zoning department appears anywhere in the county's department directory, indicating the county has not adopted zoning for its unincorporated area.
Sheridan County KS Department Directory ↗Lincoln County's official departments page lists no planning or zoning department, indicating the county does not administer county-level zoning.
Lincoln County, KS - Departments ↗The county's official departments listing shows no planning/zoning office, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas (zoning handled only by the cities of Jetmore …
Hodgeman County (official county website) ↗Logan County has no planning and zoning department among its listed departments; zoning is a City of Oakley function, consistent with the county having no countywide zoning.
City of Oakley - Logan County Departments ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed; land-use zoning applies only within incorporated cities, not the unincorporated county.
Mitchell County, KS - Official Website ↗Ness County's official department directory lists no planning and zoning department or zoning administrator, indicating no county zoning.
Ness County, KS — Departments ↗The county directory lists no planning and zoning department, indicating no countywide zoning.
Jewell County, Kansas - County Directory ↗No county planning or zoning department appears among the county's listed departments, indicating no county-administered zoning for unincorporated land.
Rawlins County Departments ↗The county lists no planning or zoning department; zoning in the area exists only at the city level (e.g., City of Osborne), not county-wide.
Osborne County - Departments ↗The county's official page states no defined regulations exist for rural areas; zoning applies only within incorporated municipalities such as Phillipsburg and Logan.
Phillips County, KS - Building Regulations & Permitting ↗No county planning or zoning department appears among the county's listed offices; county-wide zoning is not indicated for unincorporated Smith County.
Smith County, Kansas (official county website) ↗The county has no county-wide zoning code; land use in the unincorporated area is largely unregulated.
Tiny Home Regulations in Kansas (Chautauqua County section) ↗No county planning/zoning department is listed; zoning regulation exists only within Scott City, not the unincorporated county.
Scott County, Kansas (county government) ↗No county planning or zoning office appears among Chase County's listed departments, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Chase County, Kansas official website ↗Norton County's official department directory includes no planning or zoning department, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas (zoning exists only within incor…
Norton County KS - Departments ↗Ellsworth County lists no county planning & zoning department; zoning/land use is administered by cities such as Ellsworth rather than at the county level.
Ellsworth County, KS - Official Website ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed in the official county directory and no county zoning resolution for unincorporated areas was found; municipal zoning applies o…
Atchison County Staff Directory (departments list) ↗No planning or zoning department appears among Elk County's listed departments, consistent with this rural county having no county zoning.
Elk County Kansas :: Departments ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed; zoning exists only within incorporated cities (Meade, Plains, Fowler), not the unincorporated county.
Meade County, KS - Departments ↗No county planning or zoning office appears among Wichita County's listed departments, indicating no countywide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Wichita County, Kansas official website ↗No county planning or zoning office is listed for this least-populous, single-township rural county, consistent with no county-wide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Unified Greeley County, KS - Official Website ↗Graham County's own FAQ ('Do we have county zoning?') indicates the county does not have county-level zoning; verbatim body could not be retrieved but the official page title an…
Graham County - FAQ: Do we have county zoning? ↗Cheyenne County's government lists no planning & zoning or code enforcement department; zoning is administered by cities such as St. Francis, not by the county.
Cheyenne County, KS - Government ↗Edwards County lists no county planning/zoning department and no county zoning ordinance; zoning regulation is found only at the municipal level (City of Kinsley).
Edwards County, KS Official Website ↗No county zoning or planning department is listed among Grant County departments; land-use zoning applies only within the City of Ulysses.
Grant County, KS - Departments ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed among the county's offices, indicating no countywide zoning regulation.
Comanche County, Kansas official website ↗No planning or zoning department or regulations are listed among the county's departments on its official site.
Barber County, Kansas - Home ↗The county's official FAQ states plainly: 'There is no zoning in Cowley County' (incorporated cities set their own).
Cowley County FAQ ↗No county planning or zoning department is listed among Stanton County offices; only the Appraiser and Clerk handle land records.
Stanton County, KS official website ↗No county planning or zoning department or county zoning resolution is identified for Morton County's unincorporated area; zoning is administered only by the incorporated cities.
Morton County, KS official website (departments) ↗One email a week: the best counties to live off-grid, rule changes that matter, and rule changes as Kansas counties adopt or drop codes. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Every county here has a full profile — water, land prices, hazard safety, seclusion, and the rest of its building rules. See the Kansas state page for all 105 counties ranked, or go back to the national list.
General guidance, not legal advice. Off-grid, building, and land-use rules are often set at the county level and change often. Verify with your county and state before acting. Data reviewed 2026-06-26.