GeraJobs / US Wage Premium / Howard County, MD
Howard County, Maryland — Wages & Employment (2023)
Ranked #54 of 3,141 US counties by the Gera Local Wage Premium US (117.2, US = 100) — computed from real BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data.
What is the average wage in Howard County, MD?
Howard County, MD has a GLWP-US of 117.2 (rank #54 of 3,141), above the US average. Average weekly wage: $1632 (~$84,864/year, US = $1392/wk). Its highest-concentration sector is Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (LQ 2.79x). Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
Gera Local Wage Premium US
Howard County's wage premium vs US average (rank #54 of 3,141). Above the US average.
How this is calculated$1,632
Avg weekly wage (2023)
$84,864
Approx annual pay
117.2
GLWP-US (US = 100)
#54 / 3,141
National rank
169,720
Average employment
$1,392
US avg weekly wage
Howard County vs US average — wage comparison
| Metric | Howard County | US Average | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg weekly wage | $1,632 | $1,392 | +$240 |
| Approx annual pay | $84,864 | $72,384 | +$12,480 |
| GLWP-US index | 117.2 | 100.0 | +17.2 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023, all industries, all ownership types. Annual pay = weekly wage × 52 (derived). GLWP-US = (county wage / US $1392/wk) × 100.
Howard County — top industries by employment concentration
Location Quotient (LQ) > 1.0 means the industry is more concentrated here than the US average. Private sector, BLS QCEW 2023.
| Industry (NAICS sector) | LQ | Avg Wk Wage (sector) |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific & Technical Services | 2.79x | $2,630 |
| Wholesale Trade | 1.99x | $2,032 |
| Construction | 1.27x | $1,709 |
| Administrative & Support Services | 1.15x | $1,159 |
| Real Estate & Rental and Leasing | 1.12x | $1,627 |
LQ = (county sector employment share) / (US sector employment share). Source: BLS QCEW 2023, agglvl_code=74, own_code=5 (private sector).
Howard County — GLWP-US breakdown
GLWP-US
117.2
US = 100
National Rank
#54
of 3,141 counties
Wage Premium
+$240
vs US avg/wk
GLWP-US = 117.2 (rank #54 of 3,141, above the US average). Formula: ($1632/wk ÷ $1392/wk) × 100 = 117.2.
Explore US County Wage Premiums — Interactive
US average = $$1,392/wk (GLWP-US 100). Showing top 50 results.
| Rank | County | State | GLWP-US | Avg Wk Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #28 | Montgomery County | MD | 127.2 | $1,770 |
| #54 | Howard County | MD | 117.2 | $1,632 |
| #72 | St. Mary's County | MD | 113.4 | $1,579 |
| #84 | Baltimore City | MD | 110.3 | $1,535 |
| #123 | Anne Arundel County | MD | 103.7 | $1,443 |
| #164 | Prince George's County | MD | 98.8 | $1,375 |
| #220 | Baltimore County | MD | 94.8 | $1,319 |
| #257 | Frederick County | MD | 92.5 | $1,287 |
| #258 | Harford County | MD | 92.5 | $1,287 |
| #388 | Calvert County | MD | 86.2 | $1,200 |
| #449 | Cecil County | MD | 83.8 | $1,166 |
| #560 | Charles County | MD | 81.5 | $1,135 |
| #760 | Somerset County | MD | 77.5 | $1,079 |
| #823 | Carroll County | MD | 76.7 | $1,067 |
| #840 | Washington County | MD | 76.4 | $1,063 |
| #926 | Queen Anne's County | MD | 75.3 | $1,048 |
| #932 | Wicomico County | MD | 75.2 | $1,047 |
| #937 | Talbot County | MD | 75.1 | $1,046 |
| #983 | Caroline County | MD | 74.6 | $1,038 |
| #1,283 | Kent County | MD | 71.0 | $988 |
| #1,449 | Dorchester County | MD | 69.5 | $967 |
| #1,675 | Allegany County | MD | 67.7 | $942 |
| #2,320 | Garrett County | MD | 62.4 | $868 |
| #2,466 | Worcester County | MD | 61.2 | $852 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023 Annual Single File, US public domain. GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage ÷ US avg $1,392/wk) × 100. Top sector LQ = employment location quotient (private sector). Computed by GeraJobs.
Howard County wages — FAQ
- What is the GLWP-US score for Howard County, MD?
- Howard County, MD has a Gera Local Wage Premium US (GLWP-US) of 117.2 (US average = 100), ranking #54 of 3,141 US counties. This puts it above the US average. Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
- What is the average weekly wage in Howard County, Maryland?
- The BLS QCEW 2023 data shows the annual average weekly wage in Howard County, Maryland is $1632, equating to approximately $84,864/year. The US average is $1392/wk ($72,384/year). GLWP-US: 117.2 (US = 100).
- How many people are employed in Howard County?
- In 2023, Howard County, Maryland had an annual average employment of 169,720 workers covered by unemployment insurance, per the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. This covers private-sector and government workers across all industries.
- What industries are most concentrated in Howard County?
- Based on BLS QCEW 2023 employment Location Quotients, the most concentrated private-sector industries in Howard County, Maryland are: Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (LQ 2.79x, avg $2630/wk); Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.99x, avg $2032/wk); Construction (LQ 1.27x, avg $1709/wk); Administrative & Support Services (LQ 1.15x, avg $1159/wk); Real Estate & Rental and Leasing (LQ 1.12x, avg $1627/wk). An LQ above 1.0 means the county has a higher share of that industry than the US overall.
- How does Howard County's wage compare to Maryland overall?
- Howard County has a GLWP-US of 117.2 vs the US average of 100. To see how Howard County compares to other counties in Maryland, explore the full GeraJobs US Wage Premium rankings. The GLWP-US is computed from BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data covering all industries and ownership types.
How the Gera Local Wage Premium US is calculated
GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage / US avg weekly wage) × 100. US average $1392/wk in 2023 → US = 100 by construction. Data: BLS QCEW 2023 annual singlefile, all industries, all ownership. Suppressed cells excluded. No imputation. Full methodology · Licence: US public domain.
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Other counties in Maryland by GLWP-US
Related on GeraJobs
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW 2023 Annual Single File (data.bls.gov/cew/data/files/2023/csv/2023_annual_singlefile.zip). US public domain. Area title from BLS area_titles.csv. FIPS: 24027. No figure is modelled or estimated.