Iowa vs Maryland

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Iowa

Rank #23

Overall Winner

Overall Score

65.8

Category Wins

4/10

Maryland

Rank #45

Overall Score

54.6

Category Wins

5/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

1.52%

Property Tax

1.05%

89.3

Cost of Living

116.2

$10,400

Farm Land $/Acre

$9,200

175 days

Growing Season

230 days

38"

Annual Rainfall

48"

10/10

Soil Quality

6/10

9/10

Safety (Rural)

7/10

8/10

Gun Friendly

2/10

4.3 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.3 hrs

87%

Broadband

93%

Iowa Edges Out Maryland Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 65.8 vs 54.6, Iowa comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Maryland offers cheaper farmland at $9,200/acre vs $10,400/acre. Maryland has a longer growing season (230 vs 175 days). Maryland has lower property taxes (1.05% vs 1.52%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Iowa IA	Maryland MD
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	3.9%	5.75%
	6.94%	6%
	1.52%	1.05%
	89.3	116.2
Land & Building
	$10,400	$9,200
	Partial	Yes (Statewide)
	Varies	No Statewide Code
Climate & Growing
	4b-5b	6a-8a
	175	230
	38"	48"
	10	6
	4	2
	6	2
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Unrestricted
	4.3	4.3
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Medium	Medium
	8	2
	Strong	Moderate
	Yes (Farm Sales Only)	Yes (Farm Sales Only)
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	300	454
	28%	20%
Demographics & Community
	57.2	636
	36%	13%
	87%	93%
Business
	#28	#46
	$50/yr	$100/yr
	2.8%	3.5%

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