On March 31, 2021, New York State legalized adult-use cannabis when lawmakers passed the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act. Additionally, New York’s Governor signed legislation in July 2014 that legalized medical cannabis in the state.
The first legal adult-use cannabis sale occurred in New York State on December 29, 2022, at Housing Works Cannabis Co, a dispensary owned by Housing Works, the nation’s largest minority-controlled HIV/AIDS service organization and largest community-based HIV/AIDS service organization.
“The first legal adult-use cannabis sales mark a historic milestone in New York’s cannabis industry,” Governor Hochul said in a press release at the time. “Today is only the beginning, and I look forward to continuing our efforts to solidify New York as a national model for the safe, equitable and inclusive industry we are now building.”
Weedmaps operates in New York State, and has made a concerted push to build a footprint there. According to a recent press release from Weedmaps, “in the first quarter of 2024, shoppers in New York ordered cannabis flower through Weedmaps more than half the time (53%), which is 5% more than the national Weedmaps average of 48%.”
“As for edibles, New Yorkers ordered them through Weedmaps 27% of the time, compared to the national Weedmaps average of only 18%.” Weedmaps also stated. “Vape pens as a category saw much higher orders through Weedmaps nationwide in Q1 with 25% of orders, while New Yorkers only ordered vape pens through Weedmaps 15% of the time.”
Weedmaps also determined the following:
- 45% of consumers nationwide ordered edibles through Weedmaps in Q1, and in New York that number was more than half at 54%.
- In Q1, 43% of consumers 50 and under ordered vape pens through Weedmaps, while in New York that number was 26%.
- New York has a higher Average Order Value (AOV) through Weedmaps than the National average for Q1 ($123.16 in NY vs. $80.78 national)
- New York has a 6% higher basket size through Weedmaps vs. the national average in Q1 (2.35 items vs. 2.22 national)
- Opportunity for delivery in New York: 44% of orders through Weedmaps were for delivery vs. 60% nationally in Q1 2024
“Weedmaps has been an early and consistent supporter of the New York cannabis community, and a lot of that ground work is paying off with the momentum we’re seeing in the NY market today,” said Jackie Gonzalez-Becerra, Vice President of Revenue at Weedmaps. “Community and culture are the cornerstones of the cannabis industry and our Weedmaps team is committed to showing up and supporting New York cannabis operators as the state ramps up.”
The United States adult-use cannabis industry has generated over $20 billion in total tax revenue since the first legal recreational cannabis purchase was made in Colorado on January 1st, 2014 according to a report by the Marijuana Policy Project.
“Through the first quarter of 2024, states have reported a combined total of more than $20 billion in tax revenue from legal, adult-use cannabis sales. In 2023 alone, legalization states generated more than $4 billion in cannabis tax revenue from adult-use sales, which is the most revenue generated by cannabis sales in a single year.” the Marijuana Policy Project stated in a press release.
79% of people living in the United States lived in a county with at least one regulated cannabis dispensary according to an analysis by the Pew Research Center. The Pew Research Center also found the following:
- 74% of people in the U.S. live in a state where recreational or medical cannabis is legal
- There are nearly 15,000 cannabis dispensaries in the U.S.
- California has the most overall dispensaries (3,659)
- Oklahoma has the most dispensaries per capita (36 dispensaries for every 100,000 residents)
Total legal cannabis sales in the United States are expected to reach $31.4 billion in 2024 according to a recent analysis by Whitney Economics. Additionally, leading cannabis jobs platform Vangst, in conjunction with Whitney Economics, estimates that the legal cannabis industry now supports 440,445 full time-equivalent cannabis jobs in the United States.
Whitney Economics also projects the following legal cannabis sales figures in the United States for the coming years:
- 2024: $31.4 billion (9.1% growth from 2023)
- 2025: $35.2 billion (12.1% growth from 2024)
- 2030: $67.2 billion
- 2035: $87.0 billion
The emerging legal cannabis industry in the United States is projected to add roughly $112 billion to the nation’s economy in 2024 according to an analysis by MJBiz Daily. The projection is part of the company’s 2024 MJBiz Factbook.
“The total U.S. economic impact generated by regulated marijuana sales could top $112.4 billion in 2024, about 12% more than last year,” MJBiz stated in its initial reporting.