Market Wire

Manufacturing in Maryland Runs 19% Above the National Cost Average

Maryland's manufacturing cost index stands at 119.0 against a national 100 as of June 2026 — labor at 109.5 and industrial energy at 147.3. That places it 41th cheapest of 51 jurisdictions.

Maryland's manufacturing cost index stands at 119.0 against a national 100 as of June 2026 — labor at 109.5 and industrial energy at 147.3. That places it 41th cheapest of 51 jurisdictions.

• composite (US = 100): 119.0
• labor: 109.5
• industrial energy: 147.3

The composite weights labor at 75% and industrial electricity at 25%, so Maryland's position is mostly a energy story: its energy component indexes at 147.3 against the national 100. A premium of 19 points compounds differently across shops — a labor-heavy job shop feels the labor line, an energy-hungry process plant feels the kilowatt-hours.

For a site decision the index is the starting point, not the answer: freight to customers, workforce depth, and incentives move individual cases. The per-state page carries the underlying wage and electricity series this index is built from, both refreshed automatically.

Published 2026-09-11.