Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Woodlawn's standout: natural-hazard risk is low. Overall it grades C+, 181st of 259 graded towns in Maryland. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 88% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is schools: its public schools trail 76% of Maryland towns on state tests and graduation. Woodlawn’s trail density is 1.7 miles per square mile, where Maryland’s towns sit at 0.6 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Woodlawn has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them St. Mary's Episcopal Church/Woodlawn and Lorraine Park Cemetery Gate Lodge.
Where Woodlawn beats most towns.
St. Mary's Episcopal Church/WoodlawnEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Maryland), ordered by how far Woodlawn is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 19,254 in 1960, 39,986 in 2020. The archive holds 32 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 6 maps from 1894 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Woodlawn. Close and well known come first.
Big draw32 mi National park siteWhite House311K visitors a year
Big draw32 mi National MemorialWashington Monument204K visitors a year
Big draw7 mi Stadium & arenaM&T Bank Stadium
Big draw34 mi LandmarkArlington National Cemetery
Big draw34 mi LandmarkUnited States Triumphal Arch
Big draw32 mi MuseumSmithsonian Institution30.0M visitors a yearWhite House: This image or media was taken or created by Matt H. Wade. To see his entire port, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Washington Monument: Oren Rozen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · M&T Bank Stadium: United States Department of Defense Cherie Cullen, Public domain · Arlington National Cemetery: Protoant, Public domain · United States Triumphal Arch: Hstoops, CC0 · Smithsonian Institution: Highsmith, Carol M., 1946-, photographer, Public domain
Woodlawn 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 Woodlawn.
Woodlawn has homes that are cheap against local pay and has added half again as many jobs in ten years.
For Woodlawn, that is against 9.5% in Maryland’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. 16 miles of trail in 10 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Patapsco Valley State Park Pickall Area, 433 acres with 10.1 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Patapsco Valley State Park Pickall Area | 10.1 mi | 433 |
| 2. Dead Run Stream Valley Park | — | 39 |
| 3. Western Hills Community Park | 0.1 mi | 19 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Baltimore County Public Schools. Two of its 11 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest AcademyLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 842 | B− |
| Woodlawn HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,922 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MD on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 94% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 33 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Woodlawn.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Woodlawn has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 25° and about 29 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here grew from 15,392 in 2013 to 23,583.
Most working residents leave Woodlawn for work: only 6% work in town. Since 2013, Woodlawn has added 8,191 jobs, to 23,583 in 2023. Woodlawn’s average trip to work is 26 minutes.
| Woodlawn | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 32 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $82,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 16% | 18% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Maryland average. The median age in Woodlawn is 37 years. 36% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 44% across Maryland.
| Woodlawn | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 37 years | 39.4 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 36% | 42% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 16% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 24% | 23% | 22% |
55% women, 45% men
About 81 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1 point). Across Maryland, 51.3% of residents are women. Median age: women 38.7, men 35.8.
| Woodlawn | MD | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.9% | 11.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.7% | 10.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.8% | 8.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.8% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.9% | 13.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.9% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.5% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.7% | 9.9% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.8% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 12.7% | 8.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.3% | 23.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.7% | 17.4% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.8% | 6.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.6% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.9% | 20.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Woodlawn beats the Maryland average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 11% of adults binge drink in Woodlawn.
| Woodlawn | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 16% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 12% | 12% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 33% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Woodlawn | MD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.6% | 7.6% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11.1% | 14.1% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 22.9% | 15.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 3 years of the Baltimore metro’s $99K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 81% of Maryland towns; that ratio is one input to its C+ for cost of living.
63% of Woodlawn households own their home.
| Woodlawn | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 63% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,494 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 Woodlawn
About 9 of every 100 Woodlawn residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Maryland.
2 places in Woodlawn on the National Register of Historic Places.
Place in Maryland, United States
Woodlawn is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 39,986. It is home to the headquarters of the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). It is bordered by Catonsville on the south, by the Patapsco River and Howard County on the west, by Randallstown and Lochearn to the north, and by the City of Baltimore to the east. Parts of Woodlawn are sometimes informally referred to as Security, Maryland, due to the importance of the SSA's headquarters as well as nearby Security Boulevard (Maryland Route 122) and Security Square Mall. The Lorraine…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Woodlawn.
Ellicott City next door grades higher for schools (A to Woodlawn’s C−) and lower for cost of living (D− to C+).
| Town | MD rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodlawn | #181 | C+ | C+ | — | C− | C+ |
| Ellicott City | #50 | A | D− | — | A | A+ |
| Lochearn | #190 | C+ | C+ | — | C− | C+ |
| Milford Mill | #202 | C | C | — | C− | C+ |
| Baltimore | #251 | D | B− | D− | D− | C |
| Catonsville | #131 | B | C− | — | C− | A− |
Woodlawn, Ellicott City, Lochearn, Milford Mill and Catonsville report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Woodlawn with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Woodlawn grades C+ overall, better than 40% of U.S. towns and #181 of 259 in Maryland. It grades C+ for health and C− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 3 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 C+.
