Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
58,137 residents make their home in this city in Maryland.
Bel Air South grades A overall and ranks 67th of 259 in Maryland. Set against the rest, it does better than 87% of U.S. towns. Where it does best is incomes: the median household earns $124K. Health is another plus (A−): it is healthier than 85% of U.S. towns. What holds it back is cost of living — the typical home is worth about $406K, 4.1 years of the Baltimore metro’s $99K median household income. The city has 7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them St. Mary's Church and Woodside. The biggest place to walk is Harford Glen, 243 acres with 9.9 miles of trail. 49% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more locally, above both the Maryland town median (42%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%).
Figures: incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · National Register of Historic Places · OpenStreetMap.
Where Bel Air South beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Bel Air South | MD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.7% | 15.4% |
47,709 counted in 2010 and 57,648 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maryland), ordered by how far Bel Air South is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 3,360 in 1970, 57,648 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2011 and 5 maps from 1901 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Bel Air South is unincorporated, so Harford 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 Bel Air South.
There are 21 miles of trail across 12 parks and preserves. For Bel Air South, the trail network density is 1.0 miles per square mile. Parks and preserves here: 12, covering 659 acres.
| Bel Air South | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 9.5% | 9.5% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Harford Glen | 9.9 mi | 243 |
| 2. Emily Bayless Graham Park | 1.9 mi | 74 |
| 3. Maryland Center for the Arts | 1.7 mi | 44 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Two of the 8 schools are below, and why each made the list. Its public schools are run by the Harford County Public Schools. The 6 public schools in Bel Air South teach 3,388 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patterson Mill Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 716 | B+ |
| Patterson Mill High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 839 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MD on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Maryland is food insecurity: 9.7% of its 44,243 adults worry about having enough food, against 15.4% statewide. Against the 5,215 U.S. towns with household incomes like Bel Air South’s, it is healthier than 63%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
Bel Air South: 33% of adults have high blood pressure. Two figures for adults locally: 15% say their health is fair or poor, 32% feel lonely.
| Bel Air South | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 23% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 19% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 34% | 33% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 9.7% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Bel Air South | MD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.7% | 15.4% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9% | 13.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.5% | 7.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected losses in Bel Air South break down as 59% from inland flooding and 12% from heat waves. The town’s risk rating from FEMA comes in at 15 of 100. Flood insurance has paid out on 2 claims here since 1978.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Half commute less than 17 miles. Jobs based in Bel Air South grew to 9,994 in 2023, 1,582 more than in 2013. 19% of workers work remotely from home here. The top destinations are Baltimore (13%), Bel Air (9%) and Towson (4%).
| Bel Air South | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $124,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 19% | 18% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 3.9% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 32 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In July, afternoons reach 88°; in January, nights fall to 24°, and about 18 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The age mix tracks Maryland closely: no broad group is more than 4 points off. The share of residents in Bel Air South who are under 18: 24%. For Bel Air South, the median age is 38.5 years.
| Bel Air South | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 49% | 42% | 29% |
| Median age | 38.5 years | 39.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 24% | 23% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 16% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.3 points. Across Maryland, 51.3% of residents are women. Median age: women 39.7, men 37.4.
| Bel Air South | MD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.7% | 11.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.8% | 10.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.4% | 8.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.2% | 13.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.8% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.3% | 9.9% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.7% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.5% | 8.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.7% | 23.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.4% | 17.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.9% | 6.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 28.3% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 21.1% | 20.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
A home in Bel Air South typically sold within 35 days of listing. In Bel Air South, the going rate for rent is $1,757 a month. Among households here, 82% own their home.
| Bel Air South | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 82% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,757 a month | $1,810 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bel Air South. Close and well known come first.
Big draw23 mi Stadium & arenaM&T Bank Stadium
23 mi Stadium & arenaOriole Park at Camden Yards
22 mi MuseumNS Savannah
22 mi National MonumentFort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine283K visitors a year
22 mi MuseumWalters Art Museum
22 mi Stadium & arenaCFG Bank ArenaM&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 · Walters Art Museum: Dylan k, CC BY-SA 3.0 · CFG Bank Arena: Don Woods, CC BY-SA 3.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Bel Air South
About 6 of every 100 Bel Air South residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Maryland.
Where Bel Air South’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
7 places in Bel Air South on the National Register of Historic Places.
Census-designated place in Maryland, United States
Bel Air South is a census-designated place (CDP) in Harford County, Maryland, United States. The population was 47,709 at the 2010 census, up from 39,711 in 2000.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Bel Air South.
| Town | MD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bel Air South | #67 | A | C | — | B | A− |
| Bel Air | #158 | B− | C | C | B | B+ |
| Bel Air North | #62 | A | C+ | — | B | A |
| Abingdon | #106 | B+ | C+ | — | B | B+ |
Bel Air South, Bel Air North and Abingdon report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Bel Air South with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Bel Air South grades A overall, better than 87% of U.S. towns and #67 of 259 in Maryland. It grades A− for health and B for schools.
The typical home is worth about $406,000, 4% 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.
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