Manufacturing in Maryland Runs 24% Above the National Cost Average

Maryland's manufacturing cost index stands at 123.6 against a national 100 as of July 2026 — labor at 109.5 and industrial energy at 165.9. That places it 43rd cheapest of 51 jurisdictions.

• composite (US = 100): 123.6
• labor: 109.5
• industrial energy: 165.9

The composite weights labor at 75% and industrial electricity at 25%, so Maryland's position is mostly an energy story: its energy component indexes at 165.9 against the national 100. A premium of 24 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.