First State to Ban Dynamic Pricing at Grocery Stores – Newser
Maryland shoppers will soon be free from dynamic pricing at grocery stores, an emerging trend across the country that sees customers charged different prices for identical items purchased at the same time. The state is poised to become the first in the country to outlaw dynamic or surveillance pricing at large grocery retailers and some delivery platforms, with Gov. Wes Moore saying he’ll sign the Protection from Predatory Pricing Act, set to kick in Oct. 1, 2026, per Fox News. The law targets the use of demand and personal data—including inferred income, family size, neighborhood, and shopping history—to set prices based on what a store thinks you’re willing to pay, helped by instantly-updating digital price tags.
A Consumer Reports investigation found totals for identical, same-time grocery purchases varied as much as 23%. “This type of manipulation of data is not fair,” Moore tells WDCW. Under the new rules, prices must stay fixed for at least a full business day, and retailers can’t use surveillance data, income, ethnicity, or purchase history to tweak prices shopper by shopper. Stores can still alter pricing for loyalty program members, however, which advocates say could be used to punish non-members. They also note retailers will be given 45 days to correct violations without facing penalties, and even with enforcement, fines top out at $25,000. Still, backers say it’s a big step for consumer protection that could grow larger, with states including California, Colorado, Illinois, and New Jersey weighing similar moves.
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