Maryland vs Washington

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

Maryland

Rank #45

Overall Score

54.6

Category Wins

3/10

Washington

Rank #31

Overall Winner

Overall Score

64.6

Category Wins

6/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

1.05%

Property Tax

0.94%

116.2

Cost of Living

112

$9,200

Farm Land $/Acre

$4,700

230 days

Growing Season

210 days

48"

Annual Rainfall

100"

6/10

Soil Quality

7/10

Safety (Rural)

7/10

2/10

Gun Friendly

6/10

4.3 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.8 hrs

93%

Broadband

89%

Washington Edges Out Maryland Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 64.6 vs 54.6, Washington comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 6 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Washington offers cheaper farmland at $4,700/acre vs $9,200/acre. Maryland has a longer growing season (230 vs 210 days). Washington has lower property taxes (0.94% vs 1.05%).

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	Maryland MD	Washington WA
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	No
	5.75%	—
	6%	9.22%
	1.05%	0.94%
	116.2	112
Land & Building
	$9,200	$4,700
	Yes (Statewide)	Yes (Statewide)
	No Statewide Code	Permitted with zoning approval; increasingly allowed
Climate & Growing
	6a-8a	8a-10a
	230	210
	48"	100"
	6	7
	2	5
	2	1
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Permitted
	4.3	3.8
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Medium	Minimal
	2	6
	Moderate	Strong
	Yes (Farm Sales Only)	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	454	388
	20%	44%
Demographics & Community
	636	106
	13%	17%
	93%	89%
Business
	#46	#22
	$100/yr	$180/yr
	3.5%	3.9%

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