The Port of Baltimore closed its 2025 books at about 50 million tons, the second-best year in its history, one year after the Key Bridge collapse cut 2024 short. The figures below are the official numbers from the Maryland Port Administration (MPA) and the governor’s office, with the national rankings that matter to a shipper choosing a port. Each table carries its source. The page is revised once a year.
Headline numbers
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total cargo, public and private terminals (tons) | 52.3M, record | 45.9M | About 50.0M, second-best year | Governor’s office, 2026-03-24 |
| Foreign cargo (tons) | 49,983,622 | Same | ||
| Foreign cargo value | $65.6B, third-highest ever | Same | ||
| National rank, foreign cargo value | 10th | Same | ||
| National rank, foreign cargo tonnage | 11th | Same | ||
| Containers at Seagirt (TEU) | About 1.1M, record | 741,215 (foreign commerce report) | 1,113,309, record | MPA 2026-01-29, MPA 2024 FCSR |
| Autos and light trucks (units) | 749,799 | 728,225 | MPA 2024 FCSR, governor’s office | |
| Ro-ro farm and construction machinery (tons) | 848,628, record | 887,513, up 6 percent, record | MPA 2025-02-25, governor’s office | |
| Public-terminal general cargo (tons) | About 11.1M, third-largest ever | Governor’s office | ||
| Vessel calls | 2,223, up 21 percent, record | Same | ||
| Weekly container services | 12 | 15 | Same | |
| Cruise passengers | 444,000 plus | 413,639 | MPA South Locust Point, governor’s office |
A note on 2024 containers: the MPA foreign commerce report lists 741,215 TEU, while the 2023 figure of about 1.1 million comes from a total-scope description. The two scopes differ, and 2024 was the Key Bridge year. Cite 2025 as the headline.
National rankings by cargo, 2025
| Cargo | US rank | 2025 volume | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ro-ro farm and construction machinery (imports) | 1st | 887,513 tons | Governor’s office |
| Forest products (rolled paper, wood pulp) | 1st | 1.1M tons | Same |
| Autos and light trucks | 2nd | 728,225 units | Same |
| Exported coal | 2nd | Rank only in the official release | Same |
| Imported aluminum | 2nd | Not stated | Same |
| Imported gypsum | 2nd | Not stated | Same |
| Imported salt | 2nd | Not stated | Same |
| Imported sugar | 2nd | Not stated | Same |
The US Census Bureau reported in 2024 that almost 60 percent of US tin imports, worth more than $500 million, entered through Baltimore in 2023, with lead, nickel and zinc also significant.
Value versus tonnage
Autos and light trucks were worth almost $20 billion in 2025, about 30 percent of the port’s cargo value, on roughly 1.5 million tons, about 3 percent of tonnage. The port’s value ranking (10th) sits above its tonnage ranking (11th) because of that vehicle trade. For a 3PL shipper it means the port’s partner network is built around high-value, handling-sensitive cargo: cars, machinery, paper and containers, not only bulk.
Economic footprint
| Metric | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Annual economic value | About $70B | Governor’s office, 2026-03-24 |
| Maryland jobs tied to the port | More than 273,000 | Same |
| Years above 700,000 autos | 13 straight through 2025 | Same |
Infrastructure numbers a shipper uses
| Item | Figure | Page |
|---|---|---|
| Seagirt berth depth | 50 ft, one of four US East Coast ports at that depth | Seagirt |
| Seagirt ship-to-shore cranes | 12 | Seagirt |
| Seagirt annual capacity | 1.5M TEU | Seagirt |
| Dundalk | 570 acres, 13 berths | Dundalk |
| Auto and ro-ro space portwide | 710 acres | Fairfield and Masonville |
| Double-stack rail | Live since June 22, 2026, about 160,000 added containers a year expected | Double-stack rail |
| Sparrows Point Container Terminal | 168 acres, first berth 2028, 1M plus containers a year | SPCT |
| Key Bridge reopening | Late 2030 | Key Bridge routing |
The 2024 Key Bridge closure
On March 26, 2024 the container ship Dali struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The port closed to deep-draft vessels while salvage crews removed about 50,000 tons of steel and concrete. The Dali was refloated on May 20 and the full 700 ft wide, 50 ft deep federal channel reopened on June 10, 2024, eleven weeks after the collapse. Total tonnage fell to 45.9 million in 2024, and then 2025 produced the second-best year on record, a record TEU count and a record 2,223 vessel calls. The highway crossing is still gone. The rebuild is budgeted at $4.3 billion to $5.2 billion and opens in late 2030.
How Baltimore 3PL uses this
The numbers tell the desk where the partners need to be: drayage at a terminal that just set a container record, ro-ro partners at a port that moves 728,225 vehicles, and a managed logistics desk that plans around the one number still missing, the bridge.
What to send for a quote
- Cargo type and annual volume in TEU, units or tons
- Origin ports and ocean carriers, or inland origins for exports
- Delivery regions and the share that goes to the Midwest
- Any hazmat, over-dimensional or temperature requirement
- The ports you are comparing Baltimore against, so the desk can show the lane math
Send it to the quote desk and you get a Baltimore lane plan within one business day.
Questions shippers ask
01How much cargo did the Port of Baltimore handle in 2025?
About 50 million tons across public and private terminals, the second-best year in the port’s history. Foreign cargo was 49,983,622 tons worth $65.6 billion.
02How many containers went through Baltimore in 2025?
1,113,309 TEU at Seagirt Marine Terminal, a record, on 15 weekly container services.
03What is the Port of Baltimore ranked No. 1 for?
Ro-ro farm and construction machinery imports (887,513 tons) and forest products (1.1 million tons). It ranks No. 2 for autos, coal exports, and imported aluminum, gypsum, salt and sugar.
04Why are the 2024 numbers lower?
The Key Bridge collapsed on March 26, 2024 and the port was closed to deep-draft traffic until the channel fully reopened on June 10, 2024. Total tonnage fell from 52.3 million in 2023 to 45.9 million in 2024, then recovered to about 50 million in 2025.
05How often are these statistics updated?
Once a year after the Maryland Port Administration and the governor’s office publish the prior year’s results, usually in the first quarter. The updated date in the header is the last revision.
Sources
- 01Governor’s office, 2025 port results (2026-03-24)
- 02MPA release, 2025 container record (2026-01-29)
- 03MPA release, 2024 results (2025-02-25)
- 04MPA 2024 Foreign Commerce Statistical Report
- 05Maryland Daily Record, auto shipments and port value (2026-04-10)
- 06US Census Bureau, top imports and exports at the Port of Baltimore (2024)