The report, “Cannabis Consumers in America: Part 2: The Purposeful Consumer,” was researched in partnership with Jointly, and examines who is consuming cannabis, which products they consume, when and where they consume, as well as why.
What and Who?
Flower (60%) led the way on product consumption while vapes (24%), dabs (8%) and edibles (6%) proved less popular. Tinctures (0.9%), topicals (0.4%) and drinks (0.3%) all registered below 1% in reported consumption.
Those figures are also similar by gender: flower consumption was reported by 62% of males and 60% of females. Consumption of vapes (25% male, 24% female), dabs (8% for both male and female), and edibles (7% male, 5% female) were also similar.
Flower consumption also remained steady amongst all age demographics, and was most-reported amongst the 58-76 age group at 64%. Meanwhile, 60% of the 42-57 age group reported flower consumption, 62% for the 26-41 demographic, and 60% amongst the under 26 crowd.
Vapes, in contrast, were most popular amongst Gen Z, with 27% of that demographic reporting vape consumption. Only 18% of the 58-76 demographic reported vape consumption, while both the 26-41 and 42-57 demos were at 22%.
Dabs were also more popular amongst younger consumers than older. A leading 9% of the under 26 demographic reported dab consumption, compared to 7% for 26-41, 5% for 42-57, and 2% for 58-76.
Inversely, edibles were more popular amongst older demographics than younger. A leading 12% of the 58-76 crowd reported edible consumption and 11% for 42-57 ages. The 26-41 demographic reported 7% while under 26% was at 4%.
Amongst tinctures, topicals and drinks, the only notable percentage was 3% of the 58-76 demographic consuming tinctures; every other age group and product registered 1.5% or below.
Consuming With Who, When and Where?
Evening (23%) and before bed (19%), perhaps unsurprisingly, were the most reported cannabis consumption times. Early morning (17%), however, was the next most commonly reported consumption time. Late morning (9%) was the least reported, while early afternoon (16%) and late afternoon (15%) were similar.
While those trends were comparable amongst most age demographics, one contrast stood out: 22% of the under 26 demographic reported cannabis consumption before bed, compared to just 8% for the 58-76 age group. The 26-41 (18%) and 42-57 demographics (13%) were between.
Consumers were alone for half (50%) of reported consumption sessions, according to the report. Meanwhile, 22% reported consuming with their significant other, 15% with friends, 10% with family, 1.9% with co-workers, 1% with kids, and 0.4% with strangers.
More than three-quarters (79%) of cannabis consumption occurs at home, according to the report. Of that 79%, 64% is inside at home while 15% is outside at home. Five percent reported consuming at work while 3% reported in nature; 6% reported combination while 5% said other.
Consuming Why?
Among consumer goals of consumption, relax and refresh (29%) was the most reported reasoning.
Relieve stress (22%) was the next most reported, while improve sleep (10%), ease pain (9%), enjoy socializing (8%), focus and create (6%), and energize and uplift (5%) were all comparable. The other goals of consumption were recover from exercise (3%), stimulate appetite (3%), enhance intimacy (2%) and replace other substances (1.3%).
This report compiled data collected since 2020 from 80,000 cannabis consumers across more than 200,000 experiences, according to New Frontier Data. More data and key takeaways from the report can be found here.
