Maryland is moving to ban companies like Walmart and Kroger from ‘surveillance pricing’ — what it is and how to avoid it

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Whether it’s a digital price tag on a store shelf that can be altered at the press of a button (1) or an online price point that fluctuates based on an algorithmic analysis of a consumer’s digital footprint, the strategy of amending product costs in real-time is on the rise (2).

Retailers are taking advantage of AI and their access to consumer data to customize prices based not just on supply and demand — which is considered “dynamic pricing” (3), but also on a shopper’s location, search history, personal details, past buying habits and more (the more nefarious “surveillance pricing” or “price discrimination” (4), which is itself a type of dynamic pricing).

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In response to these trends, Maryland is about to become the first state to ban the practice in the grocery sector.

The Protection From Predatory Pricing Act (5), which passed in the state legislature earlier in April, takes aim at companies that Governor Wes Moore says (6) are using “new technologies to drive up the bill for working families.” It’s a practice his leadership — and authorities like the Federal Trade Commission — believe to be invasive, exploitative and anti-competitive (7).

“The cost of basic household goods could surge based on the time of day, the weather, or granular consumer data, allowing stores to calibrate price increases to extract maximum profits on the backs of consumers,” explained a release announcing the legislation back in January (6). It denounced “using shoppers’ personal data to charge different prices to individuals for the same bag of groceries.”

Consequences to contravening the Predatory Pricing Act

Under the Act, supermarkets would be prohibited from engaging in what could be considered dynamic pricing, including using consumer surveillance data like shopping habits, and/or protected class data (ethnicity, religion, geolocation, etc.) to either set a price for goods or services, or to shape special offers or advertisements under certain circumstances.

The bill expands on the state’s existing Online Data Privacy Act (8) established in 2024 and would charge violators with unfair or deceptive trade practices under the Maryland Consumer Protection Act, resulting in civil fines starting at $10,000.

Read More: Robert Kiyosaki warned of a ‘Greater Depression’ — with millions of Americans going poor. Was he right?

The argument for dynamic pricing

Since large corporations like Whole Foods, Kroger (9) and Target started adopting electronic shelf labels en masse, The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been raising alarm bells about the tech. It launched an investigation into surveillance pricing in particular in summer 2024 (10) — the same year Walmart revealed (11) it would be installing digital price displays across 2,300 of its stores by 2026. This past March, that plan was expanded to a full nationwide rollout (12) across all 4,611 US locations (13) by year’s end.

The industry titan promoted the move as a customer experience win, as it saves employees from having to spend time manually updating price tags. The mini digital screens also include other features, such as a light to alert staff when stock needs replenishing.

An episode of NPR’s Planet Money (14), released during the early days of dynamic pricing, suggested that the advancement could help cut down on food waste and inefficiencies, along with actually promoting competition rather than being anti-competitive.

In addition, show guest Robert Evan Sanders, a professor of Marketing and Analytics at UC San Diego, argued that bargaining has been intrinsic to buyer-seller relations since commerce began. He noted that customers who had time to haggle would historically end up getting a different price for the exact same item than those who didn’t and that, even in the present day, some customers are simply more “sensitive to prices” than others.

But, one may rightfully question whether grocers should be allowed to capitalize (15) on that, given the essential nature of their offerings. And in the case of surveillance pricing, the use of individual data against users to — without their knowledge — offer them a higher price than someone else based on their demographic characteristics stands out as a key ethical issue.

The fact that traits as private and specific as dietary needs, income, how often buyers hover over particular items, or even how far they live from competitor stores could be in the realm of use for such purposes, as indicated by Consumer Reports (16), is also concerning.

How to be a savvy shopper in the age of dynamic pricing

In the absence of regulations like those championed by the FTC, Consumer Reports and the State of Maryland, the public has to remain vigilant — especially when making purchases online.

Be aware of what information various retailers could garner about you — especially via dedicated apps, loyalty programs and prompts to register or log in — as these can all be used to create pricing that isn’t in your interest. Taking the time to carefully price-check products across sellers — both in-person and online — and even on different devices can also be useful.

Experts recommend (17) clearing your cache and browser cookies often when shopping on the web, and using a virtual private network (VPN) when possible to obscure your location and search history. A browser’s incognito or private mode can likewise hide some of your details.

Get added protection

If you want some added peace of mind, platforms like Aura offer a way to safeguard your personal information.

The AI-powered service removes your personal data from Google search results, people-search sites and brokers that sell your data to advertisers. Aura can even scan the dark web and data breach sources for your credentials and alert you to any leaks of your data.

Aura also monitors spending patterns so you always know when a suspicious transaction pops up, and if identity theft does happen, their $1 million insurance protection covers eligible losses and fees.

You could save up to 68% if you sign up today — and Aura even offers a risk-free, 60-day money-back guarantee.

Keep track of your spending

Maryland may be cracking down on dynamic pricing, but in much of the country, shoppers are still dealing with fluctuating prices in the aisles. That makes it even more important to keep a close eye on where your money is going.

Tracking your budget won’t stop dynamic pricing, but it can highlight where you’re overspending without realizing it. Recurring subscriptions, automatic renewals and even dormant account fees can accumulate quietly in the background.

Reviewing these fixed costs can free up hundreds of dollars a year, helping offset the additional costs dynamic pricing might add to your budget.

You can create a custom budget and track where your money is going at all times with Monarch Money.

Monarch Money merges all your finances under one roof, from your banking statements to your investments. You can also add separate or joint accounts to your dashboard, which can be great for tracking grocery runs for couples or helping your child get used to big-picture financial planning.

The app is also well reviewed. Forbes ranked Monarch Money as their best budgeting app for 2025, as did the Wall Street Journal.

And Monarch Money also offers a seven-day free trial, so you can see if it’s right for you before you commit. Snag 50% off your first year with code WISE50.

Turn your expenses into an investment opportunity

Food inflation may be cooling on paper — dropping to a four-month low of 2.7% in March (18) — but that hasn’t stopped the price of everyday staples from climbing sharply. Items like orange juice and ground beef have surged 22% and 18% since January 2025 (19).

This means that, even before dynamic pricing further increases the purchase price for certain people, you are likely already experiencing an uptick in your grocery bill.

This budget pressure can make it feel harder to invest regularly, but a secure financial future relies on making investing a habit, even if it’s just a small amount every month.

Platforms like Acorns can help you automatically stay on track with a regular, meaningful investment strategy even when you’re not able to dedicate a portion of your income to investing.

Acorns rounds up the cost of every purchase you make to the nearest dollar and invests the difference — your spare change — in a diversified portfolio managed by experts at leading investment firms like Vanguard and BlackRock.

With Acorns, you can invest in an index ETF with as little as $5 — and, if you sign up today and set up a recurring investment, Acorns will even add a $20 bonus to help you begin your investment journey.

— With files from Becky Robertson