This September, the U.S. Census Bureau released the 2024 American Community Survey data, 1-year estimates, providing a wealth of new statistics about Montgomery County. This blog highlights key demographic and housing information about the county from this new data release and how the county compares with Maryland and the United States.

Key demographic statistics for 2024

Montgomery County had 1,082,273 residents in 2024 and continued to be Maryland’s most populous county with 17% of the state’s population. Since 2020, the county’s population has increased by more than 20,000 people, or 1.9%, higher than the state’s growth rate (1.4%) but lower than the national growth rate (2.5%).

In addition, the county had 389,161 households in 2024. However, the number of households grew at a slower rate of 0.6% during the 2020-2024 period, less than the growth rate for the state (3.3%) and nation (4.5%).

Age

The county’s median age was 40.6 years, slightly older than the state (39.8 years) and the nation (39.2 years). Despite the older median age, the county had a higher percentage of residents under age 18 (22.5%) and a similar percentage of residents ages 65 and over (18.0%). The difference in median age may be partly due to the county’s relatively smaller percentage of residents ages 18 to 34 (19.6%) and larger percentage of residents ages 45 to 64 (26.0%).

Figure 1. Age: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Racial diversity

The county continues to be a racially diverse place. Non-Hispanic Whites were 38% of its population, followed by Hispanics (22%), Blacks (18%), Asians (16%), and other racial categories (6%). Overall, 62% of the county’s residents were people of color, higher than the state (55%) or the nation (44%).

Figure 2. Race and Hispanic ethnicity: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Related to the county’s racial diversity is its many residents who were born abroad or spoke a non-English language at home. Its foreign-born population of about 365,000 people accounted for 34% of all county residents, a higher percentage than the state (17%) or the nation (15%). Among residents ages 5 and over, 43% spoke a language other than English at home, a greater percentage than the state (22%) or nation (23%).

Educational attainment

The county continues to have a highly educated population. Among its residents ages 25 and over, 61% held a bachelor’s degree or higher, the majority of whom had a graduate or professional degree. Only 45% of Maryland residents and 37% of the nation’s population ages 25 and over had a bachelor’s degree or higher, mainly due to a smaller share of people with an advanced degree. Only 8% of county residents had not graduated from high school, and the remaining 30% had a high school degree or some college education but no bachelor’s degree.

Figure 3. Educational attainment: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Household income and employment

Reflective of the highly educated population, the county had a relatively greater household income than the state or nation, while a majority of county’s employed residents worked in professional occupations.

The county’s median household income of $140,837 exceeded the state’s median of $102,905 (by nearly $38,000, or 37%) and the national median of $81,604 (by more than $59,000, or 73%). Also, 33% of households in the county earned $200,000 or more, compared to only 21% statewide and 14% nationwide. Conversely, a majority of households (59%) nationally earned less than $100,000 but only 48% statewide and 36% for the county.

Figure 4. Household income: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Among the county’s employed residents, 60% held jobs classified as “management, business, science, and arts”, which includes occupations in administration or requiring highly technical skills. In contrast, the same figures were lower statewide (51%) and nationally (43%).

Commuting to work

Although a majority of the county’s employed residents (65%) traveled to work by car, this percentage is lower than for the state (75%) or the nation (78%). With the county’s considerable amount of transit service, 10% of employed residents chose public transportation as their primary means to commute to work; the figures were only 5% statewide and 4% nationally. Another 21% of the county’s employed residents worked primarily at home, many of whom were likely employed in professional occupations which do not require them to be at their worksite full-time. The county’s percentage of residents working at home has declined from a peak of 37% in 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic but was still well above the pre-pandemic figure of 7% in 2019.

Household type

Families continued to be the majority household type (68%) in the county; 30% of all households had children under age 18. These figures were higher than those for the state (64% and 26%, respectively) or the nation (64% and 25%, respectively). Also, 27% of the county’s households were persons living alone, slightly lower than the state (30%) or nation (29%). These differences in household type distribution may account for the county’s higher average household size of 2.76 persons, compared to the state (2.55) and nation (2.50).

Key housing statistics for 2024

In 2024, Montgomery County had 408,680 housing units, an increase of more than 4,200 units or 1.0% from 2020. In contrast, the number of housing units grew by 2.2% statewide and 4.3% nationwide during the same period.

Housing types

The county has maintained a diverse housing stock, with single-family detached houses comprising 46% of all units, 18% as single-family attached houses, and 21% in larger multi-family structures with 20 or more units. Single-family detached homes continued to be the majority of housing units statewide (51%) and nationally (61%). Although the county had a higher percentage of units in large multi-family structures than the state (11%) or nation (11%), for single-family attached units, the state had a larger percentage (22%) than the county (18%).

Figure 5. Housing unit type: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Homeownership and housing value

The county’s homeownership rate of 65% was similar to the nation’s (65%) and slightly lower than the state’s (68%). Partly reflecting the county’s overall higher household income, its housing value and housing costs for homeowners were also much higher than the state or nation.

The county’s median home value of $660,800 for owner-occupied units was much higher than the state’s median of $436,300 (by $224,500, or 51%) and national median of $360,600 (by $300,200, or 83%). Further, the county had a different distribution of home values. About 30% of the county’s owner-occupied units were valued under $500,000, but the majority of units statewide (61%) and nationally (68%) were in this category. However, 21% of the county’s units were valued at $1 million or more, compared to only 7% for the state and 8% nationally.

Figure 6. Home value: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Related to the higher housing values, the county’s median for monthly costs for homeowners with a mortgage was $2,974, higher than the state’s median of $2,389 (by $585, or 25%) and the national median of $2,035 (by $939, or 46%). Nearly half (49%) of the county’s homeowners with a mortgage had monthly housing costs of $3,000 or above, compared to 30% of the state’s homeowners and 24% of homeowners nationwide.

Residential rent

The county’s median monthly gross rent of $2,097, higher than the state’s median of $1,721 (by $376, or 22%) and the national median of $1,487 (by $610, or 41%). More than half of the county’s renters (55%) had monthly housing costs of $2,000 or above, compared to 33% of renters in the state and 27% of renters nationwide. In contrast, half of renters nationwide paid less than $1,500; this figure was 37% statewide and 16% for the county. However, 52% of renters in the state and nationally experienced a housing cost burden (spending 30% or more of their income on housing) but only 47% of renters in the county did so despite the county’s overall higher housing costs.

Figure 7. Monthly gross rent: Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States

Looking ahead

This December, the Census Bureau will release the 2024 ACS 5-year estimates. Data for 2025 from its population estimates program will also be released starting in December and on a rolling basis into the next year, while 2025 ACS data will be released later in 2026.

Visit Montgomery Planning’s Research & Strategic Projects Division page to see its other demographic studies.

About the author
James Lee is the forecaster and demographic research specialist in Montgomery Planning’s Research and Strategic Projects Division. His areas of expertise include demographic analysis, census statistics, GIS data analysis, and immigration. James has a master’s degree in geography from University of Georgia and, prior to joining Montgomery Planning, was an immigration analyst for the federal government and a GIS analyst for Gwinnett County, Georgia’s planning department.