Official Federal Data
Howard County, Maryland
FIPS 24027 · Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD · Population 336,328
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$149,763 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.5% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$37.1B ▲
GDP
64.5% ▲
Bachelor's+
35.7% national
Demographics & Population
Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 · 5-Year Estimates
Household Income
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
Median Household
$149,763 ▲
Per Capita
$67,501 ▲
Mean Household
$184,243 ▲
Poverty Rate
5.2% ▲
Median Income Comparison
Howard County$149,763
Maryland$103,678
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23.8%
18-34 · 19.7%
35-54 · 28.4%
55-64 · 12.9%
65+ · 15.2%
Race & Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnic category and overlaps with the race categories above.
Educational Attainment
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · Population 25+
95%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +5.4 pts
64.5%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +28.8 pts
34.1%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +20.0 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
336,328
Population
184,801
Labor Force
Employed
175,641
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.5% ▲ +0.8 pts YoY
Mean Commute 2 min above national avg
28.5 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
26%
Key Takeaways
- Income premium: Households earn well above the national median, supporting strong retail and housing markets.
- Talent advantage: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment exceeds the national average by 28.8 pts, supports knowledge-economy and tech attraction.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services employs 33,702 workers (25.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $146,525.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $37.1B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $146,525 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $29,084, a 5.0x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW + BEA Regional GDP.
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Industry Concentration
Location Quotient measures regional specialization vs. national average. LQ > 1.0 = concentrated.
Cluster Depth
Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Professional, Scientific & Technical Services Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
33,702
Cluster Employment
2.82x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
2.82x 33,702
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
2.59x 6,309
Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
1.68x 6,348
Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing
1.60x 584
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.06x
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
123 employed
0.14x
Chemical Manufacturing
138 employed
0.15x
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
69 employed
0.19x
Electrical Equipment, Appliance Manufacturing
89 employed
0.26x
Animal Production and Aquaculture
79 employed
0.29x
Crop Production
172 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services concentrates at 2.82x the national norm.
- Cluster depth: 4 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single employer or sector.
- Attraction whitespace: 8 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5, candidates for diversification or recruitment depending on labor-market fit.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Housing & Affordability
Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026
Housing Overview
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064
$597,900 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$2,099 ▲
Rent/Mo
71.5% ▼
Owner-Occ
3.4% ▼
Vacancy
4.0x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,362/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,511/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,857/mo
3 Bedroom
$2,358/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,611/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$3,744/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.0x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- High home ownership: 71.5% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
- Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$3,744/mo), a clear cost-of-living advantage for workforce attraction.
Source: Census ACS housing tables + HUD Fair Market Rents.
Workforce Pipeline
Labor force readiness, commuting, and workforce composition
Labor Market Overview
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B23025, B08303, B08301
205,136 ▲
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 2 min above national avg
28.5 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
26%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
86%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
64.5% ▲
HS Diploma+
95% ▼
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
42,931/yr
15,061/yr
12,553/yr
5,915/yr
3,902/yr
2,980/yr
2,520/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
21.2%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
66.6%
Service
10.5%
Sales & Office
13.4%
Construction / Maint.
4%
Production / Transport
5.4%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 175,641 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 33,529 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Howard County shows emerging potential for professional, scientific, and technical services attraction, with a 2.82x concentration and 33,702 jobs in this sub-sector.
The interconnected base across professional, scientific, and technical services, merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods, and merchant wholesalers, durable goods creates supply-chain attraction leverage rather than single-employer risk, a structural advantage for industrial recruitment.
Industry Shift Analysis
Manufacturing Automation Risk
High
Healthcare Growth Forecast
+4.2% CAGR
Remote Work Migration
67/100
Prospect Match Scores
Advanced Manufacturing
92/100
Life Sciences
84/100
Data Centers
71/100
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Data Sources
Updated from official federal government data.
Census ACS 5-Year2024
BLS QCEW2025 annual
BLS LAUS (via FRED)2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23
Frequently Asked Questions
Key economic and demographic figures for Howard County, Maryland, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Howard County, Maryland?
336,328 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Howard County, Maryland?
$149,763 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Howard County, Maryland?
3.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Howard County, Maryland?
$37.1B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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