county

Somerset County, MD

Demographic and economic profile of Somerset County, MD, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Somerset County is a small rural county on Maryland's Eastern Shore with a population of 24,685 that has contracted 4.1% over five years, reflecting persistent outmigration. The labor force participation rate of 46.8% is notably low, median worker earnings stand at $30,089, and only 17.1% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher, pointing to a workforce that is modest in size and largely non-degreed. Housing costs are low—median home value of $164,300 and median gross rent of $938—but a 20.1% poverty rate and 5.7% unemployment rate indicate significant economic stress alongside that affordability.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

24,685

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$64,943

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

38.1 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-4.1% since 2018

Somerset County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone12,896 (52.0%)
  • Black or African American Alone9,623 (38.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races1,135 (4.6%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race466 (1.9%)
  • Some Other Race Alone457 (1.8%)
  • Asian Alone185 (0.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish398
  2. 2.Arabic299
  3. 3.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)34
  4. 4.Other Indo-European17
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island15

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

17.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

65.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

17.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

5.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,368

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$34,015

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$26,031

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

5.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

20.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance2,269
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)1,309
  3. 3.Public Administration (Group)1,052
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services673
  5. 5.Construction (Group)568

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,497
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations2,243
  3. 3.Service Occupations1,733
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,455
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,053

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 2.40×)353
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 1.95×)852
  3. 3.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.30×)2,795
  4. 4.Retail Trade (LQ 1.26×)1,266
  5. 5.Construction (LQ 1.20×)765

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$164,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$938/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

73.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999921 (15.1%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999727 (11.9%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999695 (11.4%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999598 (9.8%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999567 (9.3%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999494 (8.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

17.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

85.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

46.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$30,089

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

24.5 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

8.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone6,640 (75.6%)
  • Carpooled914 (10.4%)
  • Worked At Home809 (9.2%)
  • Walked306 (3.5%)
  • Bicycle38 (0.4%)
  • Motorcycle37 (0.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.