Maryland County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 24 counties in Maryland, scored 0–100 across five domains. Mean score: 48.8. 4 counties score high, very high, or extreme.
Data: Census, BLS, Urban Institute, HUD, US Courts | Scores as of 2026-03-26
Maryland Snapshot
Maryland County Map
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All 24 Maryland counties colored by county distress score range. Hover for details; click released counties for full reports.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Maryland's 24 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Maryland Counties
24 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Score Label | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Baltimore city | 87.3 | very high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 2 | 238 | Somerset County | 76.7 | high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 3 | 402 | Prince George's County | 72.3 | high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 4 | 474 | Dorchester County | 70.4 | high county distress | Delinquency |
| 5 | 711 | Wicomico County | 66.0 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 6 | 866 | Allegany County | 63.0 | moderate-high county distress | Labor |
| 7 | 893 | Charles County | 62.6 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 8 | 1,050 | Baltimore County | 60.0 | moderate-high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 9 | 1,099 | Caroline County | 58.9 | moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 10 | 1,352 | Washington County | 54.3 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 11 | 1,507 | Cecil County | 51.6 | moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 12 | 2,009 | Worcester County | 42.6 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 13 | 2,071 | Harford County | 41.3 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 14 | 2,115 | Kent County | 40.5 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 15 | 2,275 | Talbot County | 37.4 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 16 | 2,318 | Calvert County | 36.5 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 17 | 2,374 | St. Mary's County | 35.5 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 18 | 2,387 | Montgomery County | 35.1 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 19 | 2,429 | Frederick County | 34.2 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 20 | 2,452 | Anne Arundel County | 33.8 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 21 | 2,498 | Garrett County | 32.8 | low-moderate county distress | Labor |
| 22 | 2,729 | Howard County | 27.3 | low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 23 | 2,741 | Queen Anne's County | 26.9 | low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 24 | 2,875 | Carroll County | 23.0 | low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, and the composite is the mean of those domain scores. Higher scores indicate greater household financial distress.