Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety2#15,301/15,637
Economy18#12,805/15,631
Housing21#11,821/14,977
Health18#12,793/15,609
Healthcare66#5,341/15,650
Environment57#6,578/15,453
Education18#12,834/15,649
Infrastructure22#12,206/15,650
Community32#10,701/15,651
Leisure & amenities81#2,906/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Baltimore, Maryland ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Baltimore city value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Distance to an emergency room · low1.3 mi
100/100Maryland 4.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesBaltimore city value
Natural hazard risk · low0.6
100/100Maryland 4.72025Federal Emergency Management AgencyBaltimore city value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low3 mi
99/100Maryland 13 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauBaltimore city value
Public transit commuters · high10.3%
98/100Maryland 4.2%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301
Mental health providers · high723 /100k
97/100Maryland 394 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBaltimore city value
Access to exercise opportunities · high98.8%
95/100Maryland 92.1%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBaltimore city value

Weaknesses

Drug overdose deaths · high86.5 /100k
0/100Maryland 21.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBaltimore city value
Injury deaths · high232 /100k
0/100Maryland 95 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBaltimore city value
Property crime rate · high3,982 /100k
0/100Maryland 1,820 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationBaltimore city value
Violent crime rate · high1,347 /100k
0/100Maryland 358 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationBaltimore city value
Reading scores · low2.21
0/100Maryland 3.00United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBaltimore city value
Homicide rate · high23.5 /100k
1/100Maryland 6.0 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBaltimore city value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
609,032 (2015-2019) → 573,243 (2020-2024)
−5.9%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
74.5% (2015-2019) → 85.4% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
2.6 /1k (2021) → 1.4 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−46%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Public transit commutersWorsening
17.5% (2015-2019) → 10.3% (2020-2024)
−7.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%
Child poverty rateImproving
31.0% (2015-2019) → 25.5% (2020-2024)
−5.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$50,379 (2015-2019) → $62,177 (2020-2024)
+23%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Baltimore, Maryland improved on 9 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 4. 1 moved within the margin of error and 1 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved9

Unemployment−1.8 points8.3% → 6.5%
Child poverty−5.5 points31.0% → 25.5%
Commute−2.3 min31.4 min → 29.1 min
Broadband+11 points74.5% → 85.4%
High school++2.5 points85.2% → 87.7%

Declined4

Transit use−7.2 points17.5% → 10.3%
Rent / income+1.3 points30.7% → 32.0%
Price / income+0.5×3.2× → 3.7×
Rent burden+2.5 points51.2% → 53.7%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Baltimore, Maryland between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	31.4 min2015-2019	29.1 min2020-2024	−2.3 min	Improved	73%
Bachelor's degree or higher	31.9%2015-2019	36.1%2020-2024	+4.2 points	Improved	62%
Broadband subscriptions	74.5%2015-2019	85.4%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	64%
Child poverty rate	31.0%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	−5.5 points	Improved	70%
Effective property tax rate	1.54%2015-2019	1.37%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Little change	51%
High school diploma or higher	85.2%2015-2019	87.7%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Improved	63%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.7×2020-2024	+0.5×	Declined	47%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5152015-2019	0.5082020-2024	−0.006	Within the margin of error	56%
Median household income	$50,3792015-2019	$62,1772020-2024	+23%	Improved	40%
Poverty rate	21.2%2015-2019	19.7%2020-2024	−1.5 points	Improved	58%
Public transit commuters	17.5%2015-2019	10.3%2020-2024	−7.2 points	Declined	4%
Rent as share of income	30.7%2015-2019	32.0%2020-2024	+1.3 points	Declined	45%
Rent-burdened households	51.2%2015-2019	53.7%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Declined	47%
Unemployment rate	8.3%2015-2019	6.5%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Improved	79%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.5%2015-2019	6.9%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Improved	54%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Baltimore, Maryland five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Baltimore, Maryland in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Baltimore, Maryland itself moved −0.4 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

573,243 residents

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79
60–69
50–59
40–49
30–39
20–29
10–19
Under 10

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 20–29 men (−1.2 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

573,243 residents

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

White26%148,914
Black59%335,489
Hispanic or Latino8.2%47,018

Education

401,549 residents (±100)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

No high school diploma12%49,494
High school or GED28%111,332
Some college18%74,083

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

255,668 households (±1,367)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $25k23%59,459
$25k–50k19%47,614
$50k–75k16%40,757
$75k–100k12%30,158
$100k–150k14%35,354
$150k–200k7.2%18,438
$200k or more9.3%23,888

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Under $25k (−4.2 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

255,668 households (±1,367)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Own48%121,471
Rent52%134,197

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

131,149 households (±2,428)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $75018%23,222
$750–1,0009.8%12,797
$1,000–1,50035%45,612

Home values

121,471 homes (±2,110)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $150k25%30,700
$150k–250k31%37,894
$250k–400k26%32,114

Age of homes

295,032 homes (±179)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

2010 or later4.8%14,271
2000–20094.2%12,471
1980–19999.3%27,496

Size of homes

295,032 homes (±179)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Studio4.2%12,381
1 bedroom18%53,574
2 bedrooms27%78,728

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

270,602 workers (±2,522)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Drive alone56%150,236
Carpool7.1%19,084
Public transit10%27,899
Walk5.6%15,230
Bike0.6%1,716
Work from home18%48,161
Other3.1%8,276

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+13.3 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

222,441 workers (±3,005)

Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland share

Under 15 min18%39,510
15–29 min40%89,603
30–44 min23%51,519

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Baltimore city, the county holding most of Baltimore's residents.

Baltimore city has 12,383 employer establishments, 218 for every 10,000 residents (0.88× the US rate of 248; 0.95× Maryland's), with 301,759 paid employees at an average annual pay of $77,696. The Census Bureau also counts 48,790 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 12,383; 48,790 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 218; US 248 · Maryland 230
Paid employees: 301,759
Average annual pay: $77,696; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Baltimore city by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	1,184	20.8	1.14×About typical	16,352	$27,412	355
Ambulatory health care services	1,045	18.4	0.88×About typical	16,246	$81,118	3,575
Lessors of real estate	719	12.7	1.03×About typical	4,030	$79,940	3,702
Limited-service restaurants	632	11.1	1.39×More than typical	6,306	$23,635	152
Full-service restaurants	424	7.5	0.97×About typical	8,798	$30,899	149
Religious organizations	413	7.3	1.31×More than typical	3,599	$36,221	—
Legal services	403	7.1	1.32×More than typical	4,929	$129,204	400
Grocery and convenience stores	397	7	2.36×More than typical	4,673	$29,510	201
Specialty trade contractors	345	6.1	0.39×Fewer than typical	4,838	$67,651	1,475
Management, scientific and technical consulting	327	5.8	0.86×About typical	3,152	$105,804	2,099
Offices of other health practitioners	307	5.4	0.89×About typical	2,586	$49,992	1,338
Offices of physicians	277	4.9	0.75×Fewer than typical	6,974	$115,181	480

Rank places for an industry Open Baltimore city

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 567,952 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $2.2B of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Baltimore, Maryland: $3,838 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $2.2B; −9.3% vs FY2025
Per resident: $3,838; US $1,994
Sole-source: 40%; US 30%
Single offer: 3.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Social Security Administration$837.4M38%
Defense Health Agency$497.1M23%
National Aeronautics and Space Administration$245M11%
Department of Veterans Affairs$117.6M5.3%
U.S. Coast Guard$81.8M3.7%
Maritime Administration$80.4M3.7%
Department of the Navy$53.7M2.4%
National Institutes of Health$53.2M2.4%

Top recipients

THE JOHNS HOPKINS MEDICAL SERVICES CORPORATION$495.1M22%
ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITIES FOR RESEARCH IN ASTRONOMY, INC.$244.6M11%
LEIDOS, INC.$242.2M11%
FOUR POINTS TECHNOLOGY, L.L.C.$188.7M8.6%
EQUIFAX WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS LLC$65.4M3.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.8BFY2017
2BFY2018
1.9BFY2019
2.9BFY2020
2.1BFY2021
2BFY2022
2.5BFY2023
2.5B

Top industries (NAICS)

Computer systems design and related services · 5415$621M28%
Insurance carriers · 5241$495.1M22%
Scientific research and development services · 5417$216.5M9.8%
Computer and peripheral equipment manufacturing · 3341$77.2M3.5%
Business support services · 5614$75M3.4%
Commercial and service industry machinery manufacturing · 3333

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Baltimore, Maryland

THE PRIMARY ACTIVITIES COVERED BY THIS EFFORT INCLUDE THE FINAL SERVICING MISSION AND SUBSEQUENT OPERATIONS THROUGH END-OF-MISSION. THESE ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: A. SCIENCE PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION INCLUDING: MISSION PLANNING SUPPORT, SCIENCE PROGRAM DEFINITION SUPPORT, MANAGEMENT OF THE PROPOSAL SELECTION, TIME ALLOCATION, AND GRANT AWARD COMMITTEE PROCESSES, AND SCIENCE COMMUNITY OUTREACH. B. ROUTINE SCIENCE OPERATIONS INCLUDING: PROPOSAL GENERATION AND RECEIPT, OBSERVATION PLANNING AND SCHEDULING, UPDATING INSTRUMENT HANDBOOKS, OBSERVING AND USER SUPPORT, DATA PROCESSING AND PRODUCT GENERATION, ARCHIVAL AND DATA DISTRIBUTION SERVICES, CALIBRATION ASSISTANCE AND DATA ANALYSIS, ANOMALY INVESTIGATION SUPPORT, USER GRANT ADMINISTRATION, OBSERVER ASSISTANCE AND ENGINEERING OPERATIONS SUPPORT. C. GROUND SYSTEM SUSTAINING ENGINEERING INCLUDING: SCIENCE OPERATION SYSTEM MAINTENANCE, INFRASTRUCTURE ADMINISTRATION AND SUPPORT, AND DOCUMENTATION MAINTENANCE D. SERVICING MISSION SUPPORT INCLUDING: PREPARATION AND EXECUTION OF THE OBSERVATORY VERIFICATION PROGRAM, INSTRUMENT DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT, AND OPTICAL ALIGNMENT TESTING SUPPORT E. GENERATION OF PERFORMANCE, SCIENCE RETURN, AND OTHER PERTINENT INFORMATIONAL REPORTS TO THE HSTP F. ASTRONOMICAL COMMUNITY AND GENERAL PUBLIC/EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH G. SPECIAL PROJECTS INCLUDING ORIGINS FORUM AND INDEPENDENT RESEARCH THIS CONTRACT INCLUDES AN ADDITIONAL TWO-YEAR PERIOD AFTER THE END OF HST'S SCIENCE-MISSION. THIS EXTRA TIME FOLLOWING THE CESSATION OF SCIENTIFIC OBSERVATIONS IS FOR TWO YEARS OF FOLLOW-ON ARCHIVAL RESEARCH. DURING THE FINAL TWO YEARS OF THE CONTRACT, ARCHIVAL OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE, AN ARCHIVAL RESEARCH PROPOSAL SELECTION PROCESS AND ASSOCIATED GRANT ADMINISTRATION, AND A PUBLIC OUTREACH PROGRAM WILL CONTINUE. DATA ANALYSIS SOFTWARE WILL ALSO BE MAINTAINED BUT AT A LOWER LEVEL OF SUPPORT SUCH THAT ONLY MODEST ENHANCEMENTS MAY STILL BE MADE. CONTINUING SUPPORT WILL ALSO INCLUDE THE COORDINATION OF DATA ANALYSIS SOFTWARE THAT IS PRODUCED BY THE ASTRONOMICAL COMMUNITY. ORIG PSC AR20$2.5B
ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITIES FOR RESEARCH IN ASTRONOMY, INC.· Baltimore city, MD· Research & development· Oct 19, 2016 – Sep 8, 2026· GSFC0198106DNAS526555

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Baltimore, Maryland, so they do not add up across cities.

Baltimore, Maryland's figures are part of those of Baltimore city, MD ($2.2B in FY2026), never added to them: 100% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Baltimore is mostly in Baltimore city.

See federal money in Baltimore city

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Baltimore, Maryland is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Baltimore city32100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD69

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2404000

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends