Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Aberdeen grades C overall, 214th of 259 graded towns in Maryland, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Natural-hazard risk is low and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 81% of U.S. towns. On the other side, its police reported 77 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 87% of U.S. towns. Aberdeen has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Poplar Hill and Winsted. Aberdeen’s violent crime rate is 4 per 1,000 residents, against 2.3 in Maryland’s towns and 1.6 across U.S. towns.
Where Aberdeen beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maryland), ordered by how far Aberdeen is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 101 in 1880, 16,254 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 4 maps from 1900 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Aberdeen, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Mar 11, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Aberdeen.
Aberdeen trades workers with Baltimore and other neighbors and has seen reported crime fall by a third or more.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 94% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 25 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Aberdeen.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Harford County Public Schools. Two of its 9 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,071 | C+ |
| Aberdeen HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,396 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MD on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 536 to 374 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Aberdeen reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 87% report less. The property crime rate in Aberdeen is 15.6 per 1,000 residents. Within Maryland, it does better than 35% of towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Aberdeen beats the Maryland average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 20. 15% of adults have diabetes in Aberdeen.
| Aberdeen | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 12% | 12% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 36% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 38% | 36% |
| What stands out | Aberdeen | MD |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 14.5% | 9.9% |
| More smokers | 15.3% | 10.9% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 11.6% | 8.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Aberdeen has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 25° and about 17 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Aberdeen home is worth about $343,000, about the same as a year ago, 19% below the Maryland typical home. 62% of Aberdeen households own their home.
| Aberdeen | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 62% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,363 a month | $1,810 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Aberdeen has about as many jobs (7,170) as working residents, but only 623 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Aberdeen for work: only 9% work in town. Aberdeen’s median household income is $75,000. Since 2013, Aberdeen has added 904 jobs, to 7,170 in 2023.
| Aberdeen | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 8.4% | 18% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $75,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 32 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Aberdeen | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.1% | 9.5% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Aberdeen Festival Park | 0.3 mi | 2 |
| 2. Aberdeen Family Swim Center | — | 10 |
| 3. North Deen Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Aberdeen. Close and well known come first.
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaM&T Bank Stadium
29 mi Stadium & arenaOriole Park at Camden Yards
27 mi MuseumNS Savannah
28 mi National MonumentFort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine283K visitors a year
36 mi GardenLongwood Gardens
28 mi MuseumWalters Art MuseumM&T Bank Stadium: United States Department of Defense Cherie Cullen, Public domain · Oriole Park at Camden Yards: Keith Allison, CC BY-SA 2.0 · NS Savannah: Elton Lord/Atomic Energy Commission, Public domain · Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine: ScottyBoy900Q at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Longwood Gardens: P. Hughes, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Walters Art Museum: Dylan k, CC BY-SA 3.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Aberdeen
About 6 of every 100 Aberdeen residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maryland.
5 places in Aberdeen on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Aberdeen.
City in Maryland, United States
Aberdeen is a city in Harford County, Maryland, United States, 26 miles (42 km) northeast of Baltimore. The population was 16,254 at the 2020 United States census. Aberdeen is the largest municipality in Harford County. Aberdeen is part of the Baltimore-Towson Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which is the 20th-largest United States metropolitan area. The nearest city to Aberdeen is Havre de Grace, 4.8 miles (7.7 km) to the northeast.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Aberdeen.
| Town | MD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | #214 | C | B− | D | B | C− |
| Perryman | — | — | B− | — | B | C− |
| Havre de Grace | #107 | B+ | C+ | B− | B | B+ |
| Aberdeen Proving Ground | — | — | C− | — | B | A− |
Perryman and Aberdeen Proving Ground have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Perryman and Aberdeen Proving Ground report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Aberdeen with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Aberdeen grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #214 of 259 in Maryland. It grades C− for health, D for safety and B for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
Within Maryland, it does better than 35% of towns.
That is 3.4 years of the area's median household income ($99,470 across the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
17 notable people were born here, including Michael D. Griffin and Jai Lewis.
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