2026 Maryland Tax Free Week features $1,000 cash prize video contest

Salisbury, Md. – Tax-Free Week is coming soon to Maryland.

Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman said the period is a perfect time to stock up on back-to-school essentials and clothes ahead of the fall season. She said from Sunday, Aug. 9 through Saturday, Aug. 15, shoppers in Maryland don’t have to pay the 6% sales tax on any clothes or shoes that are individually priced at under $100 or on the first $40 on backpacks.

Lierman also said that this year, there will also be a cash prize for the winner of a video contest.

“Our office of the Comptroller of Maryland is partnering with the Maryland Retailers Alliance to create a cash prize for people who are dedicated to showing others how to save a few bucks and how to shop small in Maryland,” she said. “Marylanders can win up to $1,000 by participating in the Maryland Tax Free Week video contest, which is sponsored and administered by the Maryland Retailers Alliance.”

Lierman also said Tax-Free Week is a way for the state to allow families to save a little money before back to school.

“Certainly as a parent of two, I know it can add up,” she said.

She also said Tax-Free Week is also an opportunity to save while shopping small.

“I certainly always encourage people to shop at their small retailers and small stores all around the state,” she said.

Lierman also said the tax-free initiative applies to online shopping within the state as well.