Out of the 37 US states that have legalized adult-use or medical cannabis, Oregon currently has the cheapest weed of them all.
The Portland Business Journal recently conducted a market analysis on US cannabis prices using data from Price of Weed, a website that crowdsources weed prices from stoners in every state. And although the site does not fact-check this information, the overall data pool is comprehensive enough that it is often cited in government reports and independent analyses.
According to the site, an ounce of top-shelf Oregon bud will only set you back about $210, cheaper than any other state. Neighboring Washington state comes in at a close second, with an average price of $234 an ounce. Colorado and California's well-established adult-use markets offer the next-lowest average prices, at $242/ounce and $249/ounce respectively. And Montana slips in at fifth place with $266/ounce, which is somewhat surprising given that the state's adult-use market just opened for business.
Some of the highest prices are seen in states with relatively-new adult-use markets. An ounce of high-quality Illinois weed will fetch around $352, and top-shelf Massachusetts weed goes for an average of $338/ounce. Average prices in New Jersey, which started selling recreational pot this year, are hitting around $342, but new adult-use dispensaries in Arizona and New Mexico have kept their average prices down to $297 and $283 an ounce, respectively.
But out of all 37 states that have legalized weed in some form, North Dakota takes the crown for the most expensive bud, at $382/ounce. Relatively high prices have also been seen in other states that have legalized medical marijuana but still prohibit adult-use sales. Average prices for an ounce are hitting around $340 in Delaware, Oklahoma, and Kentucky, for example. In total, the median price for an ounce of high-grade pot in these 37 states is $332, about a third higher than Oregon's average price.
The Beaver State's cheap prices are great for weed connoisseurs, but bad news for local cannabis businesses. Oregon's legal pot industry produces way more weed than the state's residents can actually buy, leading to an oversupply problem that has driven wholesale prices down significantly. With no legal outlet to shop their wares, some growers have diverted their product to the black market and even started illegally siphoning groundwater to help make ends meet. The state has attempted to address the issue by imposing stricter regulations and expanding adult-use purchase limits, but prices are still as low as ever.
Price of Weed does not delineate between legally-purchased weed and black market bud, so the price difference between the legal and illicit markets is unclear. The site does allow people from prohibition states to share their local black market prices, though. Alabama weed is pretty pricey at $341/ounce, and South Carolina's prices hover around $330, but quality bud in Idaho only costs around $274 an ounce.
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