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Thurmont, Maryland

Thurmont is a small town of about 6,300 people in Frederick County, Maryland. It has grown about 2% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.7 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Baltimore, is about 48 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
6,337
up 2.1% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$364,700
Frederick County prices up 14% since 2022
Household income
$98,125
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Washington area
108.9
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
13 miles
Waynesboro, PA
To Baltimore
48 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.9% above the U.S. average in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.7 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood7 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.1 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 5.5 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town5 public schools: 3 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byWellspan Waynesboro Hospital in Waynesboro, about 13 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityBaltimore is about 48 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Thurmont meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$364,700U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 14%Frederick County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$927 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$98,125U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
73%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,525 a yearMaryland: $4,093
Homes built before 1940
13%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
1%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
108.9U.S. average = 100 (the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 14% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area, not Thurmont alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
6,3372020: 6,204
Median age
39.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
16%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
22%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
27%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
6%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (22%); retail (15%); professional and business services (14%)
Unemployment rate
3%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
29 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
15%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
11%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Wellspan Waynesboro Hospital, Waynesboro, PA, about 13 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

5 public schools in Thurmont, run by Frederick County Public Schools.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Maryland's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
77%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
93%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
22°F
July average high
85°F
Days 90°F or hotter
18 a year
Nights at or below freezing
114 a year
Rain and melted snow
46.6 inches a year
Snow
28 inches a year
Elevation
487 feet

Weather station: Emmitsburg 2 SE (8 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Wellspan Waynesboro Hospital, Frederick, Baltimore.

Frederick County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

8 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Camp Greentop Historic District, the Camp Misty Mount Historic District and the St. John's Church at Creagerstown Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Catoctin Mountain Park1 mile
  • Appalachian National Scenic Trail7 miles
  • Gettysburg National Military Park13 miles
  • Eisenhower National Historic Site14 miles
  • Monocacy National Battlefield17 miles

Read about Thurmont's history on Wikipedia.

Know Thurmont?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Graceham, MD (unincorporated)121 people, 1 mile
  • Lewistown, MD (unincorporated)362 people, 6 miles
  • Sabillasville, MD (unincorporated)556 people, 6 miles
  • Highfield-Cascade, MD (unincorporated)1,089 people, 8 miles
  • Blue Ridge Summit, PA (unincorporated)922 people, 8 miles
  • Edgemont, MD (unincorporated)107 people, 8 miles
  • Greensburg, MD (unincorporated)314 people, 9 miles
  • Pen Mar, PA (unincorporated)1,171 people, 9 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.