Reviewed September 2026 against USDA NASS Quick Stats and the USDA 2022 Census of Agriculture.

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Maryland had 12,600 farms working 1,978,036 acres of farmland in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, with an average farm size of 158 acres, per USDA NASS. Corn and soybeans dominate the state’s row-crop acreage, while broilers alone generate 47.2% of Maryland’s total agricultural market value. The numbers below come straight from USDA NASS releases, with the exact tables linked so you can pull a fresher figure whenever NASS updates them.

Maryland Agriculture Facts: The Current Snapshot

Anyone searching maryland agriculture facts usually wants a small set of hard numbers, not a narrative. Here they are, each traceable to a USDA NASS source:

• 🌾 12,600 farms operated in Maryland as of the 2023 count, per USDA NASS State Agriculture Overview.
• 📐 1,978,036 acres of total farmland, per the 2022 Census of Agriculture Maryland profile.
• 📏 158 acres average farm size, per the USDA NASS 2022-2023 Maryland Bulletin.
• 🐔 47.2% of Maryland’s total agricultural market value comes from broilers alone — poultry and eggs together were valued at $1,616,998,000 in the 2022 Census.
• 🌽 Corn and soybeans together covered 870,000 acres in 2025, worth a combined $512.9 million in production value.
• Try it: Run your own numbers

Farmland in Maryland: Acreage, Farm Size, and Land Use

Farmland in Maryland totaled 1,978,036 acres in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, according to the USDA 2022 Census of Agriculture Maryland county profile. Of that, 1,397,492 acres was classified as cropland — the rest is pasture, woodland attached to farms, and other farm-use land. Spread across 12,600 farms, that works out to an average of 158 acres per operation, per the 2022-2023 Maryland Agricultural Statistics Bulletin.

That average masks a wide spread. Maryland’s farm base runs from small direct-market vegetable operations of a few acres to row-crop and poultry operations covering several hundred acres, plus large family-run grain farms on the Eastern Shore. The Census of Agriculture breaks this down by size class at the county level — the same PDF linked above carries county-by-county cropland and farmland acreage if you need figures for a specific county rather than the state total.

• ✔ Total farmland: 1,978,036 acres (2022 Census)
• ✔ Cropland: 1,397,492 acres (2022 Census)
• ✔ Number of farms: 12,600 (2023, USDA NASS)
• ✔ Average farm size: 158 acres (2022-2023 Bulletin)

These figures move slowly — the Census of Agriculture is conducted every five years, with the next full count due in 2027 for the 2027 reference year. Between census years, USDA NASS’s annual Quick Stats releases update farm counts and some acreage estimates, so the 12,600-farm figure is more current than the acreage breakdown, which still reflects the 2022 Census.

Farming in Maryland: Corn, Soybeans, and What They’re Worth

Farming in Maryland is anchored by two row crops. In 2025, Maryland growers harvested 410,000 acres of corn, producing 70,110,000 bushels valued at $308,484,000, per the USDA NASS State Agriculture Overview for Maryland. Soybeans covered 460,000 acres, yielding 20,240,000 bushels worth $204,424,000.

Combined, corn and soybeans occupied 870,000 acres in 2025 — well over half of Maryland’s 1,397,492 cropland acres — and generated $512,908,000 in production value between them. That concentration matters for anyone modeling Maryland cropland economics: two commodities carry most of the state’s row-crop revenue.

Both figures are Quick Stats releases, meaning they update on USDA NASS’s regular publication schedule — corn and soybean production estimates are revised multiple times a season (planting-intentions, mid-season, and final estimates) before the annual figure is locked in. If you’re reading this more than a season out, pull the current-year number directly from the same overview page rather than reusing the 2025 figures above.

• 🌽 Corn (2025): 410,000 acres harvested, 70.11 million bushels, $308.48 million value
• 🫘 Soybeans (2025): 460,000 acres harvested, 20.24 million bushels, $204.42 million value
• 📊 Combined row-crop value: $512.9 million across 870,000 acres

Beyond corn and soybeans, Maryland’s diversified farm sector includes vegetables, orchard fruit, and wheat, but the research base for this article does not carry current state-level yield or value figures for those crops beyond the aggregate categories above — USDA NASS’s Quick Stats tool lets you filter by commodity, year, and unit for any crop not covered here.

Poultry, Dairy, and Livestock: Maryland’s Biggest Value Driver

Livestock, not row crops, is where Maryland agriculture concentrates most of its dollar value. Poultry and eggs were worth $1,616,998,000 in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, per the USDA NASS Maryland Agricultural Profile — and broilers specifically account for 47.2% of the state’s entire agricultural market value, crops included. That single figure explains why the Eastern Shore’s broiler houses show up in almost every serious discussion of Maryland farm economics.

Dairy is the second livestock pillar. Maryland’s roughly 50,000 dairy cows produced 987 million pounds of milk in the 2022 Census, valued at $209,106,000.

• 🐔 Poultry & eggs market value: $1,616,998,000 (2022 Census)
• 🥇 Broiler share of total ag market value: 47.2% (2022 Census)
• 🥛 Dairy cattle: ~50,000 head (2022 Census)
• 🥛 Milk production: 987 million pounds, valued at $209,106,000 (2022 Census)

These livestock figures are Census-year numbers, so they carry a five-year update cycle rather than an annual one. For a more current read on Maryland milk production specifically, USDA NASS publishes quarterly Milk Production reports covering all major dairy states, available through the Maryland state statistics page — the research base for this article did not carry the most recent quarterly figures, so treat the $209.1 million and 987-million-pound figures as 2022 Census baselines rather than a live count.

Poultry and dairy operators in Maryland can track flock-house surroundings, pasture condition, and field-level vegetation health through the Farmonaut web and mobile apps, pairing satellite monitoring with the on-farm recordkeeping USDA’s Census already asks producers to maintain.

Forestry and Land Stewardship in Maryland

Maryland’s farmland sits alongside a substantial forest base — the state’s Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service both track forest cover as part of the broader land-use picture, since farm woodland and managed forest interact directly with the cropland and pasture figures above. The research base compiled for this article is USDA NASS agricultural data rather than USFS forestry inventory, so specific current forest-acreage or timber-value figures for Maryland are not included here — the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program publishes state-level forest data that would be the correct source to pull a current figure.

What the agricultural data does show is how forestry interacts with farm operations: farm woodland is counted separately from cropland in the Census of Agriculture’s land-use breakdown, and Maryland’s 1,978,036 total farmland acres minus its 1,397,492 cropland acres leaves roughly 580,000 acres in pasture, farm woodland, and other uses — the category where agroforestry, buffer strips, and managed farm timber sit.

• ✔ Non-cropland farm acreage: approximately 580,000 acres (total farmland minus cropland, 2022 Census)
• ✔ For current statewide forest-cover figures: consult the USFS Forest Inventory and Analysis program, which resurveys states on a rolling basis
• ✔ For farm-level conservation programs involving forested buffers, Maryland producers work through USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service county offices

Calculator: Estimate Your Maryland Cropland’s Revenue Potential

Using Maryland’s 2025 corn and soybean per-acre values, estimate what a given acreage split between the two crops could generate at those production values — enter your own acreage and split to see the math.

Assumptions: uses Maryland’s statewide average per-acre production value for corn ($752/acre) and soybeans ($444/acre) from 2025 USDA NASS data, applied uniformly regardless of soil type, yield variability, or input costs. Excludes crop insurance, government payments, and operating expenses — this is a gross production-value estimate, not a profit calculator.

Comparison Table: Maryland Agriculture Facts at a Glance

How to Verify These Numbers Yourself

Every figure in this article traces to a public USDA source, and each updates on its own schedule. Here’s the method for pulling a current number instead of relying on this snapshot:

1. Crop production and value (corn, soybeans, and others): Go to the USDA NASS Quick Stats database, filter by state (Maryland), commodity, year, and unit. Quick Stats updates monthly during the growing season and finalizes annual figures each winter.
2. Farm counts, acreage, and land use: The Census of Agriculture runs every five years — 2022 is the current release, with 2027 next. Between census years, use Quick Stats’ annual survey estimates for farm-count updates.
3. Dairy and milk production: USDA NASS publishes quarterly Milk Production reports by state, available through the Maryland state statistics page, which update more frequently than the five-year Census figures.
4. Poultry and livestock market value: The Maryland Agricultural Profile compiles Census-year commodity breakdowns; it refreshes on the same five-year cycle as the Census.
5. Net farm income: As of this review, the most recent published figure is $65,664 per farm for 2024 — 2025 projections were not yet released at the time this research was compiled. Check USDA’s Economic Research Service farm income series for the current release.

This method — go to the primary USDA source, filter to Maryland, check the vintage stamped on the release — works regardless of what year you’re reading this in, which matters more than any single number above.

Satellite Technology for Maryland Farms

Maryland’s 12,600 farms average 158 acres each — small enough that field-by-field visibility matters, and satellite monitoring closes that gap between USDA’s annual aggregate reporting and what’s happening on a given field this week. Farmonaut’s platform gives Maryland producers and foresters:

• ✔ Real-time crop and soil monitoring for corn, soybean, and specialty operations
• ✔ Carbon and environmental impact tracking to document sustainability practices
• ✔ Blockchain traceability for supply-chain transparency on Maryland-grown products
• ✔ AI-driven advisories on weather, pest pressure, and input timing
• ✔ Fleet and logistics optimization for larger operations

Access is through mobile app, web browser, or API, scaling from single-field operators to larger agribusinesses.

FAQs: Maryland Agriculture

How many farms are in Maryland?

Maryland had 12,600 farms as of 2023, per the USDA NASS State Agriculture Overview. This figure updates through USDA’s annual survey program; check the same source for a more current count.

How much farmland is in Maryland?

Maryland had 1,978,036 acres of total farmland in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, including 1,397,492 acres of cropland, per the USDA 2022 Census of Agriculture Maryland profile.

What is the average farm size in Maryland?

158 acres, per the USDA NASS 2022-2023 Maryland Bulletin, covering the 2022-2023 reporting period.

What are Maryland’s most valuable agricultural products?

Poultry and eggs lead by a wide margin at $1,616,998,000 in the 2022 Census, with broilers alone making up 47.2% of the state’s total agricultural market value. Corn ($308,484,000) and soybeans ($204,424,000) are the leading crops by 2025 production value, and dairy contributes $209,106,000 from roughly 50,000 dairy cows.

Is farming in Maryland mostly crops or livestock?

By market value, livestock — specifically poultry — dominates. Broilers represent 47.2% of Maryland’s total agricultural market value on their own, more than corn and soybeans combined. By acreage, however, cropland (1,397,492 acres) is the larger land use.

What is Farmonaut’s role in Maryland agriculture?

We at Farmonaut provide real-time satellite monitoring, AI-based advisory, blockchain traceability, and resource management tools for Maryland’s farmers — helping track field conditions and environmental impact between USDA’s annual and five-year reporting cycles.

Where can I find technical support or API documentation?

Developers can integrate Farmonaut’s satellite data via our API. For technical details, consult our API developer docs.

Further reading:

• Maryland agriculture
• here

Conclusion: Maryland Agriculture’s Durable Fundamentals

Maryland’s agricultural base is defined by scale and concentration rather than sheer size: 12,600 farms averaging 158 acres each, working 1,978,036 acres total, but generating most of their value from poultry — broilers alone account for 47.2% of the state’s total agricultural market value. Corn and soybeans remain the backbone of Maryland row-cropping, together worth $512.9 million across 870,000 acres in 2025, while dairy adds a further $209.1 million from a smaller, roughly 50,000-head herd.

None of these figures are static. USDA NASS Quick Stats updates crop numbers through the growing season and finalizes them each winter; the Census of Agriculture resets the farm-count and land-use baseline every five years, next in 2027. The method matters more than any single figure printed here: go to the primary source, filter to Maryland, and check the vintage stamped on the release before you cite a number as current.