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- Baltimore
How walkable is Baltimore?
By Oscar Higson-Spence. Updated
Baltimore has a walkability score of 77 out of 100 across the 5 km around its center, which makes it very walkable: most errands can be done on foot. It is the 10th most walkable of the 58 cities ranked in the United States.
What's within walking distance of the center
2,258 shops, restaurants, parks and other everyday places are mapped within a 30 minute walk of central Baltimore. The nearest grocery is about 12 minutes away on foot. It earns full or nearly full points for groceries, restaurants & bars, shopping, banks, parks, schools, books & libraries and culture & entertainment.
Groceries
- Red Crown, 13 min
- Old Town Market, 15 min
Restaurants & bars
- Mosaic, 2 min
- Silver Moon II, 2 min
Shopping
- Sunpride Nutrition, 3 min
- 7-Eleven, 4 min
Coffee
- Zeke's Coffee @ Baltimore Farmer's Market, 7 min
- Argosy Cafe, 8 min
Banks
- MECU Credit Union, 6 min
- First National Bank ATM, 7 min
Parks
- Shot Tower Metro Park, 1 min
- Saint Vincent de Paul Church Park, 1 min
Schools
- James McHenry Elemntary/Middle School #10, 7 min
- The Excel Center Adult High School, 7 min
Books & libraries
- Custom House - formerly The Big Top, 5 min
- Bar Library, 9 min
Culture & entertainment
- In My Lifetime: Mini Hip-Hop Museum, 2 min
- Nevermore Hall, 2 min
Measured from the center at 39.2904, -76.6064, the point near Baltimore's middle with the most places in walking range. Walking times assume 80 m per minute along an estimated street route.
Street layout
Within 800 m of the center there are about 143 street intersections per km², and blocks average 78 m long. That is a well-connected street grid, so the score is not reduced.
How far walkability reaches
Baltimore's score of 77 is the average across the 5 km around its center, the point with the most everyday places within a walk. Walkability averages 96 within 1 km of the center, 87 from 1 to 3 km out and 67 from 3 to 5 km out. 17 of the 91 points within 5 km fall on water or on land without streets, such as hillsides, forest or farmland, and are left out, so the score describes only the built-up part. 73% of the sampled area scores 70 or more, where most errands can be done on foot. Walkability falls off steeply away from the center, so check a specific address on the map.
- 90+
- 70–89
- 50–69
- 25–49
- 0–24
Each hexagon is the score at a point, 1 km from its neighbours, across the 5 km around central Baltimore. Rings mark 1, 3 and 5 km from the center. Gaps are water or land without streets.
| Area | Score | Scoring 70+ |
|---|---|---|
| Center | 98 | 100% |
| Within 1 km | 96 | 100% |
| 1 to 3 km out | 87 | 93% |
| 3 to 5 km out | 67 | 55% |
Nearby cities
| City | Distance | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Washington, D.C., United States | 57 km | 79 |
| Philadelphia, United States | 144 km | 89 |
| New York City, United States | 273 km | 93 |
| Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States | 277 km | 37 |
| Pittsburgh, United States | 316 km | 61 |
Questions about walking in Baltimore
Is Baltimore a walkable city?
Around its center, yes. Baltimore has a walkability score of 77 out of 100 across the 5 km around its center, which makes it very walkable: most errands can be done on foot. Its center scores 98. The score covers about 80 km² around the busiest point rather than the whole city, and suburbs further out are usually less walkable, so check a specific address on the map. It ranks 10th of 58 cities in the United States and joint 170th of 690 worldwide on How Walkable.
What is the most walkable city in the United States?
New York City is the most walkable of the 58 cities ranked in the United States, with a score of 93. Baltimore ranks 10th with 77.
How does Baltimore compare with nearby cities?
Baltimore is less walkable than its nearest ranked neighbours: it scores 77, against Washington, D.C. (79, 57 km away), Philadelphia (89, 144 km away) and New York City (93, 273 km away).
Which part of Baltimore is most walkable?
Baltimore's most walkable area is its center, the point near the middle of the city with the most places in walking range, which scores 98. Walkability averages 96 within 1 km of it. Beyond 2.5 km, it holds up best to the north (averaging 84) and falls most to the south-east (47).
Why is Baltimore's score different from its Walk Score?
Walk Score's city scores average every neighborhood within the city limits, weighted by where people live, so they count outer suburbs that the 5 km around Baltimore's center leaves out, and they are usually lower. Address by address the two agree closely: across 46 addresses in the United States and Canada, How Walkable's scores were 5.9 points from Walk Score's on average, as the accuracy study at howwalkable.com/accuracy shows.
How is Baltimore's walkability score calculated?
For Baltimore it is the average of 74 points spaced 1 km apart within 5 km of its busiest point, leaving out water and land without streets; 54 of them score 70 or more. Each point counts groceries, restaurants, shops, cafés, banks, parks, schools, libraries and cultural venues within a 30 minute walk, gives nearer places more weight, and loses up to 20% where streets are sparse or blocks are long, using open map data from Overture Maps (release 2026-09-23.1) and OpenStreetMap. It measures what is within a walk, not what the walk is like: pavements, traffic, safety, hills and heat are not part of the score.
This page is generated from open map data with a published walkability method, explained in the methodology. Places from Overture Maps release 2026-09-23.1. City position and population from GeoNames.
Ask about walking anywhere in ChatGPT with the How Walkable app, for example "How walkable is Baltimore?"