Moving to
Germantown.

All Germantown data Compare Germantown

90,719people live here $117,546median household income▲ 46% above US $2,040median rent per month▲ 44% above US $422,400median home value▲ 27% above US

Germantown is an unincorporated community in Montgomery County, MD. It has no city government: the county runs it, and the Census counts it as its own place.

What it's like to live in Germantown

Germantown is a large unincorporated community in Maryland with county unemployment below the national average, household incomes running above the national average, air quality that stays clean most of the year, and a highly educated workforce. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Germantown deals with rent well above the national average, home prices well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, and cold winters.

The good

Low unemployment in the county
Higher-than-average incomes
Clean air
Highly educated workforce
Low student-teacher ratio

The not so good

Rent well above the national average
High home prices
Above-average commute times
Cold winters

How Germantown compares

Median household income

Germantown$117,546

Maryland avg$103,678

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Germantown$2,040

Maryland avg$1,705

US$1,413

Median home value

Germantown$422,400

Maryland avg$419,900

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Germantown

Based on Germantown's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$4,080

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

Income to keep rent under 30%: $81,600 a year
47% of Germantown renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$84,480

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $42,240
Homes cost 3.6× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of living▲ 44% above US

$2,040/mo median rent

Rent is expensive here, at $2,040 a month median and well above the national average. This is the kind of city where housing costs deserve serious budgeting before committing to a move. Home prices run above average, with a median around $422,400. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.

Median home value $422,400 · 47% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

3.7% county unemployment

Unemployment in Montgomery County is 3.7%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Montgomery County (county-wide)

Safety

167 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Germantown doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Montgomery County Police Department jurisdiction as a whole, which runs below the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.

Property crime 1571/100k · Policed by Montgomery County Police Department (county-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▲ 18% above US

31 min average commute

Traffic is a real factor here. The 30.8 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 7 in 10 workers drive to work; 5% take public transit; 22% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

59%

Work from home

22%

Carpool

10%

Public transit

5.0%

Other

2.4%

Walk

1.1%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 82°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 27°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Healthcare

1 hospital

There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 1.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.

Medicare-certified hospitals

Education & workforce▲ 40% above US

50% bachelor's degree or higher

This is a highly educated city, with over half the adult population holding a college degree. That tends to shape the job market and the broader culture, and it's a solid indicator of a strong professional scene.

Schools

19 public schools inside the boundary

There are 19 public schools inside the boundary and 2 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park (13 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Germantown's strongest points are county unemployment below the national average and household incomes running above the national average; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and home prices well above the national average. A year of median rent ($2,040/mo) equals 21% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit remote workers (22% of workers here already work from home) and college-educated professionals. It may be a harder fit for renters on a tight budget.

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