How many people live in ?

Updated Apr. 6, 2026Refreshed annually
In 2024, there were about 339,700 people living in Howard County, MD. That makes Howard County the sixth-most populous county in Maryland. It is home to 5.4% of people living in the state.

340K

population of Howard County, MD (2024)

5.4%

County share of the Maryland population (2024)

About 339,700 people lived in Howard County, MD in 2024.

Population estimates, 2000–2024

What are Howard County, MD’s age demographics?

About 55,500 Howard County, MD residents are aged 65 and older in 2024. That represents 16.3% of its population. For comparison, the age group represents 17.7% of Maryland’s population and 18% in the US overall.
Another 78,500 Howard County residents, or 23.1% of the population, were children under 18. For comparison, the age group represents 22% of Maryland’s population and 21.6% in the US overall.

A higher share of Howard County, MD's population is aged 45–64 than the US as a whole.

Population estimates by age group, (2024)

What are Howard County, MD’s racial and ethnic demographics?

Non-Hispanic Black or African American residents make up 20.9% of the Howard County, MD population, higher than the national share of 12.6%. Howard County also has a larger share of people identifying as non-Hispanic Asian (20.6%) than the US overall (6.5%).
In contrast, Howard County’s non-Hispanic white population accounts for 45.5%, below the 57.5% nationwide, and the Hispanic population makes up 9.1% of the county, compared with 20% nationally.
Racial and ethnic make up differ based on location. These figures reflect how people identified their race alone (not in combination with other races), and separate out Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, following Census reporting standards.

Howard County, MD has a higher share of a non-Hispanic Asian population than Maryland as a whole.

Population estimates by race and ethnicity, (2024)

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Methodology

USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.

The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.

Page sources

USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.