Census-designated place · Calvert County, Maryland

Dunkirk, Maryland

Dunkirk is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, part of the Lexington Park, MD metro area. It has 2,166 residents. Dunkirk, Maryland has a quality-of-life score of 91 out of 100 (very high), ranking #1,415 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Maryland it ranks #57 of 334 cities and towns. It ranks best on hospital quality rating (high), uninsured residents (under 65) (low) and poverty rate (low). It ranks worst on average commute time (high), job growth (low) and gyms and fitness centers (low).

91Very high

Quality-of-life score: #1,415 of 15,651 cities and towns
Maryland: #57 of 334 in MD
Population: 2,166 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 328.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 2424050

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

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

Safety79#3,228/15,637
Economy94#942/15,631
Housing—
Health86#2,231/15,609
Healthcare65#5,402/15,650
Environment96#653/15,453
Education96#694/15,649
Infrastructure67#5,235/15,650
Community61#6,086/15,651
Leisure & amenities29#11,132/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Dunkirk, Maryland ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Calvert County 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

Hospital quality rating · high5.0
98/100Maryland 3.3United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCalvert County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low0.5%
98/100Maryland 7.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010High uncertainty
Poverty rate · low1.8%
97/100Maryland 9.2%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty
Reading scores · high3.42
96/100Maryland 3.00United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCalvert County value
Median household income · high$149,271
95/100Maryland $102,835United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
High school diploma or higher · high95.4%
95/100Maryland 91.2%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Weaknesses

Average commute time · high31.0 min
8/100Maryland 31.0 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Job growth · low-2.3%
11/100Maryland -1.7%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataCalvert County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.3 /10k
11/100Maryland 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCalvert County value
Distance to an emergency room · high8.9 mi
21/100Maryland 4.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCalvert County value
Social associations · low7.1 /10k
23/100Maryland 8.9 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCalvert County value
Primary care physicians · low44 /100k
26/100Maryland 86 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCalvert County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,638 (2015-2019) → 2,166 (2020-2024)
−18%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
41.7% (2015-2019) → 46.7% (2020-2024)
+5 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Public transit commutersWorsening
4.8% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−4.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%
Unemployment rateImproving
6.5% (2015-2019) → 2.0% (2020-2024)
−4.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
4.9% (2015-2019) → 0.5% (2020-2024)
−4.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.2× (2015-2019) → 3.8× (2020-2024)
+19%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×

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, Dunkirk, Maryland improved on 0 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 moved within the margin of error and 0 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Dunkirk, Maryland between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	37.7 min2015-2019	31.0 min2020-2024	−6.6 min	Within the margin of error	95%
Bachelor's degree or higher	41.7%2015-2019	46.7%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Broadband subscriptions	93.7%2015-2019	97.2%2020-2024	+3.6 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Child poverty rate	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Effective property tax rate	0.91%2015-2019	0.88%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	21%
High school diploma or higher	97.2%2015-2019	95.4%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.8×2020-2024	+0.6×	Within the margin of error	41%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3272015-2019	0.3822020-2024	+0.055	Within the margin of error	14%
Median household income	$137,6852015-2019	$149,2712020-2024	+8.4%	Within the margin of error	15%
Rent-burdened households	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	56%

“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 Dunkirk, Maryland five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Dunkirk, 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, Dunkirk, Maryland itself moved −4.3 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

2,166 residents (±419)

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: 50–59 women (−5.9 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

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

Race and Hispanic origin

2,166 residents (±419)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

White80%1,722
Black5.0%†108
Hispanic or Latino12%†270

Education

1,534 residents (±289)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

No high school diploma4.6%†71
High school or GED23%†355
Some college21%†

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

761 households (±148)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $25k3.9%†30
$25k–50k3.5%†27
$50k–75k3.9%†30
$75k–100k10%†78
$100k–150k29%†219
$150k–200k26%†197
$200k or more24%†180

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $50k–75k (−9.1 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

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

761 households (±148)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Own95%721
Rent5.3%†40

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

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

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

Rent paid

14 households (±26)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,0000.0%0
$1,000–1,5000.0%0

Home values

721 homes (±155)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Under $150k0.0%0
$150k–250k1.9%†14
$250k–400k4.0%†29

Age of homes

809 homes (±152)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

2010 or later3.5%†28
2000–20095.1%†41
1980–199945%†366

Size of homes

809 homes (±152)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom5.9%†48
2 bedrooms0.5%†4

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

1,190 workers (±255)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Drive alone84%1,002
Carpool1.2%†14
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home14%†171
Other0.3%†3

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+9.1 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

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

Time to get to work

1,019 workers (±261)

Dunkirk, Maryland
Maryland share

Under 15 min14%†140
15–29 min30%†308
30–44 min27%†279

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 Lexington Park, 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 Calvert County, the county holding most of Dunkirk's residents.

Calvert County has 1,725 employer establishments, 182 for every 10,000 residents (0.73× the US rate of 248; 0.79× Maryland's), with 19,204 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,166. The Census Bureau also counts 7,611 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,725; 7,611 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 182; US 248 · Maryland 230
Paid employees: 19,204
Average annual pay: $52,166; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	219	23.1	1.49×More than typical	1,574	$69,281	597
Ambulatory health care services	147	15.5	0.74×Fewer than typical	1,551	$65,720	331
Restaurants and other eating places	132	13.9	0.76×Fewer than typical	3,057	$21,991	25
Building equipment contractors	112	11.8	1.96×More than typical	869	$70,282	159
Lessors of real estate	81	8.5	0.69×Fewer than typical	196	$49,107	786
Construction of buildings	74	7.8	1.03×About typical	493	$82,473	202
Limited-service restaurants	68	7.2	0.89×About typical	1,462	$19,664	6
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	55	5.8	1.76×More than typical	438	$74,568	85
Services to buildings and dwellings	54	5.7	0.85×About typical	428	$40,874	413
Full-service restaurants	53	5.6	0.73×Fewer than typical	1,439	$24,265	16
Electrical contractors and wiring installation	50	5.3	2.13×More than typical	384	$64,151	66
Personal care services	49	5.2	1.08×About typical	284	$33,148	245

Rank places for an industry Open Calvert County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 94,753 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 $68.5K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Dunkirk, Maryland: $31.61 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $68.5K; +60% vs FY2025
Per resident: $31.61; US $1,994
Sole-source: 60%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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$41.1K60%
National Park Service$22.4K33%
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$4,9437.2%

Top recipients

MICHAEL K GREENBERG, M.D., P.C.$41.1K60%
VICTOR STANLEY, LLC$22.4K33%
J'S ASSOCIATES, LLC$4,9437.2%

Spending by fiscal year

1.4MFY2017
133.7KFY2018
249.9KFY2019
7.8MFY2020
93.4KFY2021
430.4KFY2022
849KFY2023
3.6KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Offices of physicians · 6211$41.1K60%
Household and institutional furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing · 3371$22.4K33%
Facilities support services · 5612$4,9437.2%

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 Dunkirk, Maryland, so they do not add up across cities.

Dunkirk, Maryland's figures are part of those of Calvert County, MD ($46.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Calvert County

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.

Dunkirk, Maryland is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Steny H. HoyerD-MD-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 2.8%

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.

Calvert County91100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Lexington Park, MD79

Other cities and towns in Calvert County

Largest first.

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
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/2424050

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends