Howard was born in Orlando, Florida. She started out doing commercials. Howard has a degree in communications and advertising from Florida State University. Before landing her first role in NBC's "Boston Common" she had already appeared in over 30 commercials. She appeared in "Two Guys and a Girl" on ABC and "Bram & Alice" on CBS. Her most famous role is probably as "Natalie Teeger" in USA network's TV series "Monk".