Best PlacesCecil County, MD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Cecil County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages hide a wide spread here, so the area matters as much as the address. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Cecil County ranks 1,248th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $95,683, everyday costs sit below the national average, and an educated workforce ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are taxes, state infrastructure, and state finances.
The best neighborhoods in Cecil County
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
The best areas in Cecil County
The parts of Cecil County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Rising Sun, Conowingo & Port Deposit
It is quieter, crime runs lower, and fewer homes sit empty.
Perryville
Biking is better, though fewer households have young kids.
North East
Tree cover is thicker.
Chesapeake City
More residents vote, though incomes run lower.
Elkton
Local pay stretches less far and health care is harder to reach.
Scores across Cecil County run from about the 6th to the 85th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
Cecil County's strengths and weaknesses
Cecil County lands in the middle because its strengths and weaknesses roughly balance. Big-city access is the standout, in the top 3% of counties. High incomes and transit follow.
The one real hole is taxes, near the bottom of the country. State infrastructure and state finances also cost it ground. Cost swings more from one part of Cecil County to another than it does between Cecil County and its neighbors, which the map below shows.
Where Cecil County ranks high
- Big-city accessBetter than 97% of counties
- Household income$95,683 median, better than 90% of counties
- TransitBetter than 87% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 86% of counties
- Low vacancyBetter than 82% of counties
Where Cecil County ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 1% of counties
- State infrastructureBetter than only 7% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 7% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 68 pleasant days a year, better than only 16% of counties
- Cheap childcare$973 a month, better than only 19% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Cecil County
A household needs to earn about $88,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Cecil County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $95,683, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Cecil County's effective rate of 0.86%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Cecil County
Cecil County runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Cecil County.
Who works in Cecil County, and how
Work in Cecil County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Cecil County
Cecil County has more restaurants and bars per resident than 96% of counties and more late-night spots per resident than 71% of counties. The coast is about 16 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Cecil County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Cecil County growing, and who is moving in?
Cecil County has grown about 4% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the Philadelphia, PA metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Cecil County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Cecil County, month by month
Cecil County sees roughly 68 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 35° | 26° |
| April | 67° | 55° | 43° |
| July | 89° | 80° | 68° |
| October | 70° | 60° | 48° |
Flying in and out of Cecil County
The nearest airport, New Castle, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 41 miles away.
The best schools in and around Cecil County
Schools across Cecil County average a C, better than 33% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Rising Sun ElementaryC · 31% proficient
- Kenmore ElementaryC− · 28% proficient
- Charlestown ElementaryC− · 27% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rising Sun Middle SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Cherry Hill MiddleC− · 28% proficient
- Bohemia Manor MiddleD+ · 26% proficient
Top high schools
- Bohemia Manor HighA− · 60% proficient
- Rising Sun HighB+ · 56% proficient
- North East HighB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Cecil County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Cecil County measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Cecil County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Cecil County suits
Families
Schools land around the 33rd percentile and crime safety beats 61%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 12% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Cecil County
Is Cecil County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Cecil County ranks 1,248th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on big-city access, high incomes, and transit, and lowest on taxes and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Cecil County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $332,894. The overall cost of living runs about 3% below the national average. Set against a $95,683 median income, cost of living beats 86% of counties.
Is Cecil County safe?
Yes, Cecil County is safer than 61% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $312 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Cecil County?
July highs average about 89 degrees, and January highs near 44 with lows near 26. That works out to about 68 pleasant days a year, more than 16% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Cecil County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Rising Sun, Conowingo & Port Deposit, Perryville, and North East. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Cecil County good for families?
Schools beat 33% of counties, crime safety beats 61%, and childcare runs $973 a month.
Is Cecil County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 82% of counties. About 12% of workers already work from home.
Compare Cecil County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Cecil County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Cecil County represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Cecil County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Cecil County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Cecil County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Cecil County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Cecil County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Cecil County detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.