Property tax in Worcester County, Maryland

By Brent Chudoba, editor Updated September 23, 2026

The median property tax bill in Worcester County, Maryland is $2,738 a year, which is about 0.73% of the county's median home value of $374,700. That effective rate is lower than the typical Maryland county (0.9%) and lower than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.

Estimate the property tax on a home in Worcester County

Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Worcester County's average effective rate of 0.73% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.

Home market value

Estimated property tax: $2,735 / year

Property tax in Worcester County at a glance

Worcester County, Maryland property tax (Census ACS, reviewed September 23, 2026)
Measure	Value
Median annual property tax	$2,738
Median home value	$374,700
Effective tax rate	0.73%
Typical Maryland county rate	0.9%
National median county rate	0.81%

Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

How does Worcester County compare in Maryland?

Among Maryland's 24 counties, Worcester County has the 23rd highest effective property-tax rate: 22 rank higher and 1 rank lower. That places it among the least taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 1789th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Maryland county ranked.

How much do homeowners in Worcester County actually pay?

The median is only the middle bill. Across Worcester County's 18,817 owner-occupied homes, 41.1% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 68.4% pay at least $2,000, and 4.2% pay under $800. Another 3.6% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.

Annual property tax paid by Worcester County homeowners (Census ACS 2020-2024)
Annual bill	Homes	Share
Under $800	785	4.2%
$800 to $1,499	2,117	11.3%
$1,500 to $1,999	2,384	12.7%
$2,000 to $2,999	5,131	27.3%
$3,000 or more	7,725	41.1%
No property tax paid	675	3.6%

Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,851 and owners without one pay $2,569. That is within 10% either way, so in Worcester County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.

How does the Worcester County property tax bill compare with local incomes?

The median property tax bill of $2,738 is about 2.8% of the median income of Worcester County homeowner households, $96,168 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 78% of Worcester County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.

Have property taxes gone up in Worcester County?

Yes. The median bill went from $2,174 in 2015-2019 to $2,738 in 2020-2024, a 25.9% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 42.9%, from $262,200 to $374,700. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.

Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.

Property tax in counties next to Worcester County

Worcester County borders 4 counties, 2 of them across the state line.

Worcester County and its neighbors, highest effective rate first (Census ACS 2020-2024)
County	Effective rate	Median bill	Median home value
Somerset County, MD	0.92%	$1,591	$173,200
Wicomico County, MD	0.85%	$2,171	$254,700
Worcester County, MD (this county)	0.73%	$2,738	$374,700
Accomack County, VA	0.48%	$985	$204,300
Sussex County, DE	0.32%	$1,222	$382,600

How is a home assessed in Worcester County?

Maryland assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Worcester County included. How Maryland assesses and reappraises homes.

Is there a homestead exemption in Worcester County?

Not as an exemption. Maryland's Homestead Tax Credit caps how much your taxable assessment can rise each year: 10% for the state portion, and a cap each county and municipality sets between 0% and 10% for its own. That is the Maryland rule, and it applies in Worcester County. Maryland's exemptions and relief programs in full.

When are property taxes due in Worcester County?

Tax is due July 1 and can be paid without interest through September 30. Owner-occupied homes are billed semiannually by default, with the first half due September 30 and the second December 31; you may instead pay the full year by September 30 and avoid the service charge of up to 1.65% on the second installment.

Maryland splits the bill into 2 installments. That is the Maryland rule. Worcester County issues and collects the bill, so the dates printed on your statement are the ones that bind you.

How to appeal your Worcester County property assessment

You contest the assessed value with the Supervisor of Assessments (informal), then the local Property Tax Assessment Appeal Board, then the Maryland Tax Court. The filing deadline is typically 45 days from the date on your assessment notice. That is the Maryland rule; Worcester County sets the exact dates and forms. The Maryland appeal process step by step.

Maryland rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Maryland page.

Work out your own numbers

Sources

Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Worcester County, Maryland: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.