Howard County GIS Maps

Howard County Maps

The maps below show a few of the county map styles included in our downloads. County packages include map exports in JPEG, PNG, SVG, PDF and GeoTIFF formats plus more than 20 GIS layers for mapping, research and analysis. Available layers include zip codes, area codes, subdivisions, school districts, political boundaries, roads, water features, points of interest and more.

County packages also include historical county demographics, business intelligence, analytical dashboards, AI-ready prompts, markdown files and related reference data. Everything is organized to save hours of manual work collecting current data, cleaning it and joining it together. That makes it easier to move faster on analytics, due diligence, business planning and location research. Paid packages are built for commercial use, but some package contents include source-specific attribution or notice guidance. Review Licensing & Data Source Notices.

Howard County Parcels

Howard County has 96,581 mapped parcels covering 152,653 acres. The median assessed value is $598,200. The median lot size is 0.32 acres. 1,867 parcels are 10 acres or larger. Residential accounts for 66.9% of parcels. Town houses follow at 21.9% and exempt at 3.4%. Of the parcels with a recorded build year, half were built in 1989 or earlier. The records carry 86,339 distinct owner names. About 2% of parcels list an owner mailing address outside Maryland. Owner names, mailing addresses and lot sizes are on nearly every parcel. Site addresses reach 92.6%. Assessed values reach 96.0%. Browse the interactive Howard County Parcel viewer here.

Howard County Parcel Data Coverage

Field coverage measured across all Howard County parcel records. Download free sample data here.

Howard County Population

Howard County had 328,200 residents in 2020. That was 14.3% higher than in 2010. Howard County added 80,358 people between 2000 and 2020, which points to steady long-term growth. The county is fairly spread out, with about 1,308 people per square mile. Some of the county's most populated postal areas include Ellicott City, Columbia and Ellicott City.

Population Trend in Howard County MD

Howard County Population per 2000, 2010 and 2020 census counts with a baseline 2030 projection.

Howard County Zip Codes

Howard County has 20 zip codes. Some of the county's most populated zip codes include Ellicott City (21043), Columbia (21044) and Ellicott City (21042). Ellicott City is the largest zip by population, with about 48,775 residents or 15% of the county total. Together, the three largest zips account for about 42% of all county residents based on 2020 population estimates.

Most Populated Zip Codes in Howard County MD

Howard County Zip Code populations and trends per most recent census data.

Howard County Demographics

Howard County has a median age of 39.4, which is close to the Maryland average. About 24% of residents are under 18, while 14.8% are 65 or older. That gives the county a fairly even mix of younger families and older adults. The largest age group is 25 to 44 at about 33.4% of the population, which points to a solid working-age base. About 64.5% of adults have a bachelor's degree or higher, above the statewide figure of 42.7%. The county has a more diverse population mix, with no single race or ethnicity accounting for all of the local story.

Key Demographics for Howard County MD

Howard County School Districts

Howard County is served by 1 public school district with 57,565 students enrolled in 2024. Several larger districts account for a substantial share of students across the county map area. Those three districts account for about 100% of public school enrollment in the map area. Total enrollment has stayed fairly steady in recent years, based on district totals from 2017 to 2024.

Largest School Districts by Enrollment in Howard County MD

Howard County school district enrollment and trends per most recent NCES reporting data.

Howard County Housing & Real Estate

Howard County has a median home value of $576,700 and a median gross rent of $2,038. About 72% of occupied homes in the county are owner-occupied, so the local housing market leans heavily toward ownership. Home values run above the Maryland median, while rents come in above the state average. In March 2026, the median listing price was $599,250 and homes spent about 21 days on the market.

Businesses in Howard County, MD

Howard County has 12,372 business listings across 910 categories. The largest categories in Howard County business listings are Real Estate Agents (430, 3.5%), Churches & Religious Organizations (243, 2.0%), and Contractors (166, 1.3%). The full Howard County business listings dataset includes names, categories, addresses and contact details where available. Howard County packages also include U.S. Census County Business Patterns data with establishment counts, employment and payroll by industry sector.

Top Business Categories in Howard County, MD

Howard County Business Listings

Howard County business listings sourced from Overture Maps. Includes locations with a high level of confidence.

Howard County Basemaps

Howard County map and data packages include a set of useful basemaps to help you get started quickly. These include a custom light grey canvas, USGS topo, imagery and other reference layers that make it easier to build clear, meaningful county maps using the included GIS layers, your own data or both. Pre-rendered map tiles for the light grey basemap are included so you can use them offline or host them on your own CDN.

Preview a Live Package Demo

See exactly what is included in a county data package. Inspect how files are organized, the interactive data explorer and how maps and analytics are laid out. The demo loads a real sample package from Maryland — explore the full structure before you buy.