Bethesda is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which in turn took its name from Jerusalem‘s Pool of Bethesda.The National Institutes of Health main campus and the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center are in Bethesda, in addition to a number of corporate and government headquarters.

As an unincorporated community, Bethesda has no official boundaries. The United States Census Bureau defines a census-designated place named Bethesda whose center is located at 38°59′N 77°7′W, while the United States Geological Survey has defined Bethesda as an area whose center is at 38°58′50″N 77°6′2″W, slightly different from the Census Bureau’s definition. Other definitions are used by the Bethesda Urban Planning District, the United States Postal Service (which defines Bethesda to comprise the ZIP Codes 20810, 20811, 20813, 20814, 20815, 20816, and 20817), and other organizations. According to the 2020 United States census, the community had a total population of 68,056.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.2 square miles (34 km2), of which 13.1 square miles (34 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (0.38%) is water.

The main commercial corridor that passes through Bethesda is Maryland Route 355 (known as Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda and as Rockville Pike and Hungerford Drive in more northern communities), which, to the north, connects Bethesda with the communities of North Bethesda and Rockville, ending, after several name changes, in Frederick. Toward the South, Rockville Pike becomes Wisconsin Avenue near the NIH Campus and continues beyond Bethesda through Chevy Chase, Friendship Heights, and into Washington, D.C., ending in Georgetown.

Bethesda is a great place for lovers of the outdoors and nature with many parks and recreation areas. Caroline Freeland Urban Park is a small community park that offers a water fountain, an open shelter & a playground. Westmoreland Hills Local Park is a park including a play area, athletic fields & tennis courts. Little Falls Stream Valley Park is a scenic, 160-acre woodlands featuring a play area, picnic facilities & trails for hiking & biking. Fleming Local Park is a community park with a picnic shelter, playground, softball field, baseball field & tennis courts. Fernwood Park is a small, time-tested park featuring a soccer field, tennis courts & playground, plus a picnic area. Maplewood-Alta Vista Local Park is a 10-acre park offering recreational amenities including tennis & basketball courts & ball fields. Wyngate Woods Neighborhood Park is a 3.5-acre, undeveloped park offering natural-surface walking trails in a woodland setting. McCrillis Gardens is a 5-acre park featuring a stone manor house, old-growth trees, shade gardens & more. Boundary Park Neighborhood Conservation Area is a compact, undeveloped park that features a grassy, mowed area surrounded by trees. Cabin John Regional Park is an 8.8-mile natural-surface trail for hikers & bikers that follows a stream in a wooded suburban park. Norwood Local Park is a community park offering basketball & tennis courts, ball fields, playgrounds & picnic tables. Glen Echo Park is managed by the Partnership for Arts & Culture, this park has kids camps, concerts, art shows & more. Timberlawn Local Park is surrounded by trees, this 13.7-acre park offers a playground, a basketball court & 2 soccer fields. 

Great schools are another feature of living in Bethesda. Highly rated schools in Bethesda include Washington Episcopal School, Bethesda Elementary School, Westbrook Elementary School, Washington Waldorf School, Bethesda Community School, Bethesda Chevy Chase High School, 2015 National Blue Ribbon School, The Primary Day School, Westland Middle School, St Bartholomew School, Wyngate Elementary School, Walt Whitman High School, Ashburton Elementary School, Bannockburn Elementary School, Bradley Hills Elementary School, Burning Tree Elementary School, Carderock Springs Elementary School, North Bethesda Middle School, Seven Locks Elementary School, Thomas W. Pyle Middle School, Wood Acres Elementary School, Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, Little Flower School, The Bethesda Montessori School Inc, Wood Acres Elementary School, Holton-Arms School, Rochambeau French International School, Landon School, Sidwell Friends Lower School, Bethesda Country Day School, Manor Montessori School, The Woods Academy, Keller Graduate School of Management- Bethesda Center, St. Jane de Chantal School, Bethesda International School, Grosvenor Center – Woodlin Elementary, The Family Academy of Bethesda, Glenmont Special School, Dutch school, The Goddard School of Bethesda, Crestview Montessori School, Taras Shevchenko School of Ukrainian Studies, Bethesda Co-Op Nursery School, Cedar Lane Nursery School, Religious School, F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine, WJLS Saturday School, Apple Montessori School, Somerset Elementary School, Lyla School, and Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church Nursery School.

Bethesda is known as a great place for foodies and is full of great restaurants including Gringos & Mariachis, Raku, Barrel & Crow, Cubanos Bethesda Authentic Cuban Cuisine and Beyond, True Food Kitchen, Woodmont Grill, matchbox, Black’s Bar & Kitchen, Olazzo and Luke’s Lobster.

Bethesda is a great location for shopping with destinations including Bethesda Square Shopping Center, Bethesda Row, The Shoppes of Bethesda, Westfield Montgomery, Georgetown Square, Wildwood Shopping Center, Westlake Crossing, The Blue House, The Shops at Sumner Place, and Kenwood Station.