The Region occupies a critical location at the heart of the Northeast Corridor between Washington DC and Philadelphia. Greater Baltimore has long been a hub of trade for the entire eastern U.S. with excellent multi-modal transportation networks including the top-ranked Port of Baltimore, passenger and freight rail, major intra- and interstate highways and three major airports. In addition to the Region's amenities that provide a high quality of life, Greater Baltimore's rich supply of talented workers makes the Region the ideal place for companies to locate and grow.
BWI Marshall Airport has experienced steady year-over-year growth in the past decade, and with the Southwest Airlines president dubbing it the 'Beast of the East.' With easy access from any point from the Greater Baltimore region, BWI Marshall Airport is located just 9 miles south of downtown Baltimore and 32 miles northeast of Washington, D.C. It served over 27 million passengers in 2018 – domestically and internationally offering 650 flights a day (FAA, 2018).
Proximity to Washington DC has led to decades of federal investment, with Greater Baltimore serving as the home to the HQ of the National Security Agency, the Social Security Administration, the Center for Medicaid & Medicare Services, Aberdeen Proving Ground, U.S. Cyber Command, Fort George G. Meade and others. In addition, the Region provides convenient proximity to the FDA, NIH and all of its 27 institutes, NIST, and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, among others.
The Port of Baltimore is one of the busiest ports in the nation and one of only a few East Coast ports with the 50-foot deep channel necessary to accommodate some of the world’s largest ships. The eastern port closest to the Midwest, and with on-dock rail, cargo from the Port can reach 2/3 of the nation’s population overnight. The Port is first in the nation for handling of autos, light trucks, heavy farm and construction machinery. A leading economic generator in the State, the Port creates over 15,300 direct and 139,000 indirect jobs in Maryland. (Port of Baltimore, 2019).
An important element of Greater Baltimore's economic success is the strength of its healthcare institutions. Indeed, Baltimore is a world leader in nearly every aspect of the healthcare industry, from education and research to patient care and health insurance management.
The Greater Baltimore region has long been a hub of research in the life sciences, research that has led to breakthroughs in preventing, lessening, or curing countless medical conditions.
The Greater Baltimore region plays a lead role in the global fight to stop cybercrime, which is estimated to cost the world as much as $6 trillion annually. Cybersecurity firms are playing a large and ever-growing role in the Region’s business landscape.
Greater Baltimore, well-positioned as a global leader in information technology, is home to successful IT companies located throughout the Region with specializations as diverse as cybersecurity, digital health records, and video gaming.
Greater Baltimore is poised for continued growth in a key industry for the future: logistics. With the rise of e-commerce, the logistics industry is one of the strategic growth industries employing a high percentage of the middle-skilled workforce. The Region's strategic location at the heart of the East Coast has already attracted dozens of major e-commerce and bulk goods distributors.
Greater Baltimore has confirmed its status as a top contributor in the US manufacturing industry, now providing over 62,800 jobs for the Region's highly-skilled workforce. The State of Maryland has experienced a 5.1% increase in manufacturing from 2015-2018, far outpacing its neighboring states.
Greater Baltimore's rich climate and varied landscapes have made it an agricultural leader for centuries. In a state that was the "bread basket" of the early United States, the Region is home to a diverse array of farm, ranch, and value-added agricultural products.
Greater Baltimore's history of energy innovation and today's leadership in numerous STEM fields position the Region as a global leader in the clean and renewable energies of the future. Across Greater Baltimore, the energy sector directly employs over 30,000 workers - from high-tech researchers to non-degree holders - and empowers the technological infrastructure behind every other growth industry (QCEW, 2019).
Baltimore and its surrounding counties provide the ideal "college town" experience for almost 300,000 students each year. From world-class educational insitutions, to a rich quality of life, to the Region's plethora of high-skilled job and internship opportunities, Greater Baltimore continues to attract top talent from across the United States and around the world.
Greater Baltimore - home to Aberdeen Proving Ground, Fort George G. Meade, the US Naval Academy, and Coast Guard Yard - has a proud history of innovation in defense technology. The Region's military and civilian experts inform US policy on topics ranging from communications, to cybersecurity, to chemical weapons, to aerospace.
Greater Baltimore is one of few regions ideally-suited to pioneer the future of digital health, an industry that will revolutionize healthcare as we know it. Companies in Greater Baltimore benefit from a rich ecosystem of healthcare assets that collectively provide every component necessary for digital health innovation: transformative research, specialized business incubation, access to funding, a talented workforce, and easily-accessible local and federal clients.
State for Science & Tech Workforce (Milken Institute, 2020)
State for Federal & Academic R&D (NSF, 2019)
Most Efficient Port in United States (Port of Baltimore, 2017)
Passenger Airport in MD-DC-VA (BWI Thurgood Marshall, 2019)
Offering businesses a competitive advantage, the average office lease/sq.ft. in the Region is $26.23 compared to $44.19 in Boston, $42.68 in Washington DC, and $28.40 in Philadelphia (JLL, Q2 2021).
Combined with a high quality of life, the Region offers a competitive Median Home Price on the East Coast at $339,800 compared to Boston at $582,700 and Washington DC at $498,100 (NAR, Q1 2021).
Greater Baltimore is among the top 3 large US metro areas for these IT job categories: Computer Network Support Specialists, Computer & Information Research Scientists, Computer Systems Administrators, Computer Hardware Engineers, Information Security Analysts, and Computer Network Architects.
Among the top 25 larges US metros, Greater Baltimore's education system leads the way. The Region boasts seven community colleges and 16 four-year colleges & universities. Of these, a jaw-dropping nine are listed as Centers of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (NIETP, 2019).
EAGB recognizes the key role that sustained investment in Greater Baltimore's early stage companies plays in the continued growth of our dynamic innovation ecosystem. As we carry out our mission to market the economic assets and opportunities in the Region, EAGB will monitor and report investment news and data for the Greater Baltimore region on a quarterly basis. These reports draw from a variety of sources in order to tell the story of Greater Baltimore's promise for new and expanding companies.
