Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,206.
Baltimore Highlands's standout: 24% of its land is conserved. Overall it grades C−, 231st among Maryland's 259 graded towns. Natural-hazard risk is low and it is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is health: residents are less healthy than 86% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Baltimore Highlands’ trail density is 2.3 miles per square mile, where Maryland’s towns sit at 0.6 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Only 7 of the 261 Maryland towns we compare have a higher July high than Baltimore Highlands. The biggest park or preserve is Southwest Area Park, at 234 acres.
Where Baltimore Highlands beats most towns.
24% of the town is conserved land, across 6 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maryland), ordered by how far Baltimore Highlands is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 13,134 in 1960, a peak of 17,770 in 1970, 7,740 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 2009 and 7 maps from 1894 on.
Explore the history →Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Baltimore Highlands. Close and well known come first.
Big draw32 mi National park siteWhite House311K visitors a year
Big draw3 mi Stadium & arenaM&T Bank Stadium
Big draw32 mi National MemorialWashington Monument204K visitors a year
3 mi Stadium & arenaOriole Park at Camden Yards
Big draw34 mi LandmarkArlington National Cemetery
Big draw33 mi LandmarkUnited States Triumphal ArchWhite House: This image or media was taken or created by Matt H. Wade. To see his entire port, CC BY-SA 3.0 · M&T Bank Stadium: United States Department of Defense Cherie Cullen, Public domain · Washington Monument: Oren Rozen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Oriole Park at Camden Yards: Keith Allison, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Arlington National Cemetery: Protoant, Public domain · United States Triumphal Arch: Hstoops, CC0
Baltimore Highlands is unincorporated, so Baltimore County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Baltimore Highlands.
Baltimore Highlands has hotter summers than almost anywhere else in Maryland, has homes that are cheap against local pay and is one of Maryland’s best towns for the outdoors.
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #5 of 261 in Maryland.
4.2 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Patapsco Valley State Park Belle Grove Area | 1.2 mi | 126 |
| 2. Southwest Area Park | 0.9 mi | 234 |
| 3. Patapsco Flats | — | 21 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Baltimore County Public Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Highlands ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 461 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MD on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 95% of U.S. communities. Since 2011, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Baltimore Highlands.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
36% of Baltimore Highlands adults get no exercise outside work, above both the Maryland town median (23%) and the median of U.S. towns (25%). 18% of adults smoke cigarettes in Baltimore Highlands. Baltimore Highlands beats the Maryland average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 23.
| Baltimore Highlands | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 23% | 25% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 15% | 17% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 8% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Baltimore Highlands | MD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.1% | 7.6% |
| More uninsured adults | 17.8% | 8.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 1,095 in 2013 to 1,497.
Most working residents leave Baltimore Highlands for work: only 2% work in town. 18% of Baltimore Highlands residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Baltimore Highlands has added 402 jobs, to 1,497 in 2023.
| Baltimore Highlands | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 11% | 18% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 32 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
July afternoons average 89°, the #2 highest of 536 Maryland places with climate records; January nights average 27.5°.
Baltimore Highlands has chilly winters and warm summers. About 19 inches of snow falls in a winter. The January low in Baltimore Highlands is 28°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 2.7 years of the Baltimore metro’s $99K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 89% of Maryland towns; that ratio is one input to its C+ for cost of living.
Baltimore Highlands’ median rent is $1,392 a month.
| Baltimore Highlands | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 54% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,392 a month | $1,810 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
19 within 15 miles of the center of Baltimore Highlands
About 6 of every 100 Baltimore Highlands residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maryland.
7,019 counted in 2010 and 7,740 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Census-designated place in Maryland, United States
Baltimore Highlands is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States, directly south of the city of Baltimore. The population was 7,019 at the 2010 census. At the 2000 census and earlier, the area was delineated as part of the Lansdowne-Baltimore Highlands CDP.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Baltimore Highlands.
| Town | MD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Highlands | #231 | C− | C+ | — | C− | D |
| Brooklyn Park | #94 | A− | B | — | B− | B− |
| Baltimore | #251 | D | B− | D− | D− | C |
| Lansdowne | #206 | C | B− | — | C− | C− |
| Linthicum | #77 | A− | C+ | — | B− | A |
Baltimore Highlands, Brooklyn Park, Lansdowne and Linthicum report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Baltimore Highlands with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Baltimore Highlands grades C− overall, better than 21% of U.S. towns and #231 of 259 in Maryland. It grades D for health and C− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
The typical home is worth about $267,000, 37% below the Maryland typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
