Although Jackson's purchase also included all of Tennessee west of the Tennessee River, the term Jackson Purchase is used only to refer to the Kentucky portion of the acquisition; the Tennessee region directly to the south is typically called West Tennessee.

The Purchase, which is primarily alluvial and is geologically part of the Mississippi Delta, is mostly agricultural. The largest city and main economic center, Paducah, has fewer than 30,000 residents. Only two other towns in the region, Murray and Mayfield, have more than 5,000 residents. The region's main educational institution is Murray State University.

Tourism is an important industry in the Purchase, largely focused on the TVA-created Kentucky Lake, which now forms most of the Purchase's eastern border, and Lake Barkley a few miles to the east.

Despite its inland location, the Purchase is in a zone of high earthquake risk. It lies near the New Madrid fault zone, which in 1811 and 1812 experienced three of the most severe quakes recorded in the United States, and also had a major quake in 1895.

Counties in the Purchase: