Cannabis legalization has been a hot subject in the United States of America for a long time. While many states have decriminalized the drug, the cannabis community still has to worry about federal regulations. Until nationwide reforms occur, state authorities will continue to control the cannabis business regulations. Consequently, this has caused a variation in the retail market of marijuana across the states where it’s legal.

Even though there are numerous factors to consider when comparing the price of cannabis, like quality and state regulations, the market generally varies according to supply and demand. According to a review by Pablo Zuanic, Connecticut is arguably the state with the least cannabis prices, while the Virginia marijuana market is the most expensive.

With a gram of cannabis costing a little less than 10 dollars in Connecticut, Zuanic points out that the low prices are mainly a reflection of the lack of demand in the state. He found that despite the abundance of medical dispensaries available in the jurisdiction, the stores had nearly ten times more flowers in stock than states like New York. While this may not directly reflect the two markets, it exhibits how supplies are plentiful relative to demand in Connecticut. 

New York, which only recently legalized cannabis, has the same price range as Ohio and Maryland, with a gram costing just below 14 dollars. Even so, Zuanic acknowledged how much the legal cannabis market in New York has to compete with the illicit marijuana industry. Moreover, the medical cannabis market in these three states is seemingly ahead of recreational use, with more sales, infrastructure, and other marijuana accessories.

New Jersey and Pennsylvania recorded relatively higher cannabis prices, with a gram costing 14.95 dollars and 15.65 dollars, respectfully. Zuanic explained that a vibrant medical cannabis market in Pennsylvania is a significant reason the state has high prices. More than 3% of the population in Pennsylvania are active users compared to the 1.3 percent in New Jersey. Still, the similarity in price is mainly because the New Jersey cannabis market has to compete with a vigorous illicit market despite having fewer patients. 

On the other hand, Massachusetts and Illinois recorded the highest cannabis prices in the United States. After failing to expunge past cannabis cases for low-level and non-violent marijuana arrests, the Massachusetts cannabis industry is seemingly on a downtrend. According to Zuanic’s review, Illinois posted some of the highest flower prices, with a gram going for nearly 19 dollars. Massachusetts doesn’t fall too far behind with a higher store count, with a gram of cannabis going for just below 15 dollars.