Marketing

Maryland 1st state to ban surveillance pricing in grocery outlets

Photo: Arnell K./peopleimages.com/Adobe Stock

April 29, 2026

Summarize with

Maryland is the first U.S. state to outlaw the use of surveillance pricing in grocery stores and the use of personal data to set potentially higher prices.

"At a time when technology can predict what we need, when we need it, when we'll pay for it and also – when we'll pay more for it, and at a time when we're watching how big companies are then using these analytics against us to make record profits, Maryland is not just pushing back. Maryland is pushing forward because we are going to protect our people," Moore said at the bill signing ceremony on April 28," stated Wes Moore, Maryland's governor, at the bill signing ceremony, according to a Guardian report.

The bill comes on the heels of several states, including New Jersey, Colorado, California, Massachusetts and Illinois, considering the same ban and as consumers are increasingly concerned about the use of their data.

Surveillance pricing allows retailers and stores to change product cost based on a wide range of data, from a consumer's search history to current location. Also called dynamic pricing, the technology has come under Federal Trade Commission scrutiny and consumer groups concerned how it may impact the ability to find affordable food items.

The FTC has been investigating dynamic pricing for years and published initial findings in January 2025. "Details like a person's precise location or browser history can be frequently used to target individual consumers with different prices for the same goods and services," stated the findings.