MARYLAND AT A GLANCE

ECONOMY

[photo, Tugboat, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, Maryland]
  • Department of Commerce
  • Maryland Department of Labor
  • Department of Planning

    • Tugboat, Curtis Bay, Baltimore, Maryland, August 2000. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    Employers

    Employment

    Income

    Manufacturing

    Origin

    Taxes

    Trade

    Workforce

    Maryland's economy continues to outperform the country as a whole. Information technology, telecommunications, and aerospace and defense are leading forces behind Maryland's economic growth. In the biotechnology area, Maryland is a noted leader and is at the center in the mapping of the human genome and commercial applications that result from its research.

    Maryland continues to invest in education in order to prepare the State for growth in sectors requiring highly educated workers. Maryland is poised to gain both defense and nondefense contracts for medical research, aircraft development, and security.

    As of August 2026, Maryland retains its AAA bond rating from S&P Global Ratings, Fitch Ratings, and Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA). Moody's Investors Service had been one of the original three rating agencies, along with S&P and Fitch, but was replaced by KBRA in May 2026.

    The largest economy sector in 2025 was government, followed by professional and business services, and real estate, rental, and leasing.

    In 2025, Maryland's nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was $568.1 billion, up from $546 billion in 2024, while the real GDP was approximately $436.2 billion, up from $433 billion. The nominal GDP measures economic output at current market prices, and the real GDP adjusts output for inflation or deflation to reflect actual production changes.

    [photo, Under Armour Global Headquarters, 1020 Hull St., Baltimore, Maryland] Several Maryland companies ranked among the nation's 500 largest companies in the annual Fortune 500 list in 2025. These include Lockheed Martin (59), Marriott International (171), Constellation Energy (186). Other companies that made the list include McCormick (355) and Under Armour (660).

    Under Armour Global Headquarters, 1020 Hull St., Baltimore, Maryland, June 2019. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    Among Maryland cities, Baltimore significantly contributes to the State's economy. In May 2023, Baltimore was chosen as a Workforce Hub under a new federal initiative with the goal of creating good jobs for those in the local communities through hire agreements, apprenticeships, and other work programs. The Baltimore Workforce Hub received federal, state, and private-sector investments to improve transportation, particularly rail service through the Amtrak Frederick Douglass Tunnel, a vital part of the Northeast Corridor.

    HIGH-TECH BASE

    Maryland ranked as the sixth most innovative state in WalletHub's 2024 edition of "Most & Least Innovative States." Two main areas, Human Capital and Innovation Environment, are analyzed using twenty-two metrics, including numbers of tech companies and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) professionals; research and development spending; and venture capital funding.

    According to CompTIA’s State of the Tech Workforce 2024 report, Maryland ranked 15th for net tech jobs in the total workforce with 228,266 workers, 8% of overall employment. There were some 15,683 tech businesses in Maryland. The tech industry contributes $37.8 billion, or 8.9%, to Maryland's economy.

    In October 2023, the Economic Development Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce named the greater Baltimore region a federal Tech Hub. The region includes Baltimore City and its seven surrounding counties. The Administration's Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs program aims to expand manufacturing and investment in regions with high growth potential to make them globally competitive in emerging technologies. The Baltimore Tech Hub will combine artificial intelligence and biotechnology to develop and improve health care technologies.

    Aiding the State's growth is the InvestMaryland Program, which is overseen by the Maryland Venture Fund Authority.

    Federal agencies located in Maryland have been a catalyst for the State's technology base. These include the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Goddard Space Flight Center, and Department of Defense operations. Advanced technology enterprise is especially strong in telecommunications, computer sciences, and biotechnology.

    Innovations in Maryland's economy are bolstered by research parks which facilitate joint research among universities, State and federal government institutions, and private industry. These parks include: The Johns Hopkins Bayview Campus (life sciences research) in Baltimore; and Shady Grove Life Sciences Center (biomedical & life sciences research) in Montgomery County. Also significant are the Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel and the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, both affiliated with The Johns Hopkins University. The research park and technology center at University of Maryland Baltimore County (bwtech@umbc) on the Catonsville campus opened in 1996 to support life sciences and high technology research, and high technology business development. In addition, the University of Maryland Baltimore County leads a consortium of universities and private sector companies to develop the Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology. Center faculty and staff collaborate with Goddard scientists in studying the earth's surface, atmosphere, and oceans.

    QUANTUM RESEARCH

    Maryland strives to be at the forefront of new technology innovation, including quantum research, which is the scientific study of how nature behaves at the smallest scales, both atomic and subatomic. As part of Maryland's plan to become a global leader in the quantum industry, the Capital of Quantum Initiative, which is a public-private partnership between the State, the University of Maryland, College Park, and private partners to fund more than $1 billion in quantum investments in Maryland, was announced in January 2025. Since the Initiative began, over $500 million in pledged investments strengthen Maryland's quantum ecosystem, or global network, through academics, workforce training and development, and technical support. Nearly a dozen quantum startups have launched in the Discovery District Maryland in Prince George's County, including the Microsoft Quantum Research Center, which opened in September 2026. Besides Microsoft, three other top global quantum companies, IQM, Quantum Motion, and Riverlane, also have established or announced facilities in Discovery District Maryland.

    To expand quantum research in the State, the University of Maryland, College Park opened the Maryland Institute for Quantum Applications within the Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence and Security in 2025. There, research on how quantum technologies, such as computing, networking, and sensing, can lead to new strategic tools and systems designed to enhance national defense capabilities.

    In addition to the University of Maryland, College Park, The Johns Hopkins University is a vital regional partner in quantum information science through its Institute for Quantum Matter and Applied Physics Laboratory. While the Institute researches and develops quantum materials and structures on a macroscopic scale and is a Energy Frontier Research Center for the U.S. Department of Energy, the Applied Physics Laboratory focuses on quantum technologies for the U.S. Department of Defense.

    [photo, World Trade Center (a pentagonal building), 401 East Pratt St., Baltimore, Maryland]

    TRADE

    Located on the Eastern seaboard, Maryland is in an ideal location for trade. Accessible through the Chesapeake Bay and the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, the     Port of Baltimore is the closest East Coast port to the Midwest. The Port also links to several major interstate highways. Cargo leaving the Port of Baltimore by truck is within an overnight drive of one-third of America's population.

    World Trade Center (a pentagonal building), 401 East Pratt St., Baltimore, Maryland, February 2008. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    In 2025, Maryland exports were valued at $16.6 billion, accounting for 2.9% of the state's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Top export destinations included Canada, France, Netherlands, India, and Morocco. Key exports included transportation equipment, natural gas, coal, chemicals, machinery, and computer and electronic products. Some 5,528 companies exported products from Maryland in 2024.

    Maryland's imports in 2025 were valued at $41.4 billion. These included autos and light trucks, chemicals, farm and construction equipment, and aluminum. Maryland imported primarily from Germany, Japan, Mexico, and Canada.

    Maryland borders the District of Columbia (the nation's capital), and is within hours by land of New York, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh. Nearly 90% of the State's population (6,203,394 in 2023) resides within the densely populated corridor between Baltimore and Washington, DC. The corridor is part of the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia Combined Statistical Area, the third most populated such area in the nation.

    Four foreign trade zones (federally mandated, duty-free sites) are found in Maryland. They are located at the Collington Business Center near Bowie in Prince George's County (#63); near BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport in Anne Arundel County (#73); and Baltimore Harbor (#74); and seven sites in Washington County (#255). As of 2023, Maryland has 34 Enterprise Zones that offer economic or tax incentives for businesses.

    [photo, CSX coal freight train, Wagners Point, Baltimore, Maryland] Transportation Infrastructure. Maryland's transportation infrastructure wisely uses the State's location to support trade. Indeed, the Port of Baltimore, the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, two primary class I rail carriers (CSX Transportation & Norfolk Southern), and several arterial interstate highways facilitate commerce.

    CSX coal freight train, Wagners Point, Baltimore, Maryland, September 2018. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    [photo, Grain silos, Wye Mills (Queen Anne's County), Maryland]

    Agriculture plays a vital role in Maryland's highly diversified economy. Of Maryland's nearly 8 million acres of total land area, some 2 million acres are farmland. In 2023, gross cash income from commodity (crop & animal) receipts and other farm-related work was approximately $2.9 billion, while net cash income was about $568 million, or $45,096 per farm. Total production expenses were approximately $3.1 billion, or $246,167 per farm, while net farm income exceeded $644 million, $51,170 per farm.

    Grain silos, Wye Mills, Maryland, September 2007. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    [photo, Oyster shells, Shady Side, Maryland] Commercial Fishing. In addition to agriculture, Maryland's commercial fishing activities in the Chesapeake Bay add a unique feature to its diverse economy. The harvesting of blue crabs, clams, and oysters are essential in the economic contribution of the Chesapeake Bay. The Bay provides half of the nation's blue crab harvest, and the seafood industry adds nearly $600 million to Maryland's economy.

    Oyster shells, Shady Side, Maryland, October 2011. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

    [photo, Commercial building near Somers Cove, Crisfield, Maryland]

    Sources for this data and additional information about Maryland's economy are available from the Department of Commerce, and the Maryland Department of Labor. Socio-economic data about Maryland may be found through the Projections and State Data Center, Department of Planning. Regional economic data may be found at the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

    Maryland's plan to revitalize older developed areas and discourage sprawling development into the State's rural areas, is overseen by the Sustainable Growth Subcabinet.

    Commercial building near Somers Cove, Crisfield, Maryland, June 2018. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

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