The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Old Line State have a larger percent of their population that never graduated from high school.
While the emphasis on going to college might be overblown, the fact is that not graduating from high school puts you at a significant disadvantage on average. Educational attainment might not be the best way to measure one person’s intelligence, but it does shine a light on the state.
We will use Saturday Night Science to determine what places in Maryland have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.
A recent study we published found that Maryland is the 25th smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 100.
But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in Maryland are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Dumbest Places In Maryland
Don’t freak out.
Some places are just smarter than others, but that says nothing about the character of the people living there. It’s another data point a real estate agent would never tell you.
For this ranking, we only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 39 cities in Maryland to rank. You can take a look at the data below.
For more Maryland reading, check out:
The 10 Dumbest Places In Maryland For 2024
/10
% Adult High School Dropout: 16.0%
% Highly Educated: 15.0%
More on Bladensburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 15.0%
% Highly Educated: 19.0%
More on Hagerstown: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 13.0%
% Highly Educated: 19.0%
More on Cambridge: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 33.0%
% Highly Educated: 29.0%
More on Riverdale Park: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 12.0%
% Highly Educated: 19.0%
More on Elkton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 13.0%
% Highly Educated: 28.0%
More on Salisbury: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 13.0%
% Highly Educated: 29.0%
More on New Carrollton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 18.0%
% Highly Educated: 36.0%
More on Mount Rainier: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 12.0%
% Highly Educated: 27.0%
More on Aberdeen: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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% Adult High School Dropout: 13.0%
% Highly Educated: 35.0%
More on Baltimore: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Old Line State
We realize that formal education is only part of it when it comes to being intelligent, but on the other hand, knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.
So, we used Saturday Night Science to narrow down our criteria to focus on a city’s educational opportunities and what percentage of the population takes advantage of those opportunities.
In short, we came up with these criteria to determine the dumbest cities in Maryland:
- % of the city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
- % of city’s population with a college degree (Age 25+)
We got the data from the U.S. Census 2018-2022 American Community Survey.
Then, our algorithm generates a rank for each place in these categories. After crunching all the numbers, a ranking of the cities in Maryland from dumbest to brightest.
For this ranking, we used every Maryland city with at least 5,000 residents. We updated this article for 2024, and it’s our tenth time ranking the dumbest cities in Maryland.
There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep
If you’re measuring the locations in Maryland where there are a high number of dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate ranking.
The dumbest cities in Maryland are Bladensburg, Hagerstown, Cambridge, Riverdale Park, Elkton, Salisbury, New Carrollton, Mount Rainier, Aberdeen, and Baltimore.
If you’re also curious enough, here are the smartest places in Maryland, according to science:
- Poolesville
- Cheverly
- Mount Airy
For more Maryland reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Maryland
- Cheapest Places To Live In Maryland
- Most Dangerous Cities In Maryland
- Richest Cities In Maryland
- Safest Places In Maryland
- Worst Places To Live In Maryland
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Maryland
Dumbest Cities In Maryland For 2024
| Rank | City | Population | % Adult High School Dropout | % Highly Educated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bladensburg, MD | 9,574 | 16.0% | 15.0% |
| 2 | Hagerstown, MD | 43,374 | 15.0% | 19.0% |
| 3 | Cambridge, MD | 13,058 | 13.0% | 19.0% |
| 4 | Riverdale Park, MD | 7,284 | 33.0% | 29.0% |
| 5 | Elkton, MD | 15,830 | 12.0% | 19.0% |
| 6 | Salisbury, MD | 32,960 | 13.0% | 28.0% |
| 7 | New Carrollton, MD | 13,580 | 13.0% | 29.0% |
| 8 | Mount Rainier, MD | 8,262 | 18.0% | 36.0% |
| 9 | Aberdeen, MD | 16,422 | 12.0% | 27.0% |
| 10 | Baltimore, MD | 584,548 | 13.0% | 35.0% |
| 11 | Cumberland, MD | 19,041 | 10.0% | 22.0% |
| 12 | Thurmont, MD | 6,313 | 10.0% | 22.0% |
| 13 | Westminster, MD | 20,099 | 12.0% | 35.0% |
| 14 | Hyattsville, MD | 20,851 | 20.0% | 45.0% |
| 15 | Taneytown, MD | 7,234 | 7.0% | 23.0% |
| 16 | Brunswick, MD | 7,781 | 8.0% | 33.0% |
| 17 | College Park, MD | 34,416 | 14.0% | 49.0% |
| 18 | Easton, MD | 17,118 | 11.0% | 39.0% |
| 19 | Berlin, MD | 5,056 | 7.0% | 32.0% |
| 20 | Glenarden, MD | 6,335 | 9.0% | 36.0% |
| 21 | Laurel, MD | 29,581 | 12.0% | 46.0% |
| 22 | La Plata, MD | 10,283 | 7.0% | 35.0% |
| 23 | Frederick, MD | 78,390 | 11.0% | 41.0% |
| 24 | Greenbelt, MD | 24,646 | 11.0% | 46.0% |
| 25 | Gaithersburg, MD | 69,016 | 12.0% | 53.0% |
| 26 | Fruitland, MD | 5,603 | 7.0% | 37.0% |
| 27 | Havre De Grace, MD | 14,743 | 8.0% | 42.0% |
| 28 | Manchester, MD | 5,403 | 2.0% | 35.0% |
| 29 | Frostburg, MD | 7,118 | 6.0% | 41.0% |
| 30 | Annapolis, MD | 40,719 | 8.0% | 52.0% |
| 31 | Hampstead, MD | 6,278 | 4.0% | 40.0% |
| 32 | Takoma Park, MD | 17,542 | 8.0% | 61.0% |
| 33 | Walkersville, MD | 6,239 | 3.0% | 44.0% |
| 34 | Chesapeake Beach, MD | 6,358 | 4.0% | 50.0% |
| 35 | Bowie, MD | 57,922 | 4.0% | 50.0% |
| 36 | Rockville, MD | 67,142 | 6.0% | 66.0% |
| 37 | Mount Airy, MD | 9,667 | 4.0% | 54.0% |
| 38 | Cheverly, MD | 6,132 | 4.0% | 56.0% |
| 39 | Poolesville, MD | 5,686 | 3.0% | 71.0% |
No surprise..Can we say ghettos? Would not step foot in any of these places