Marijuana has always been illegal in the United States. On the Federal level, it is still not permissible to use, dispense, or possess this substance. However, in 1996, California became the first state to legalize the medical use of marijuana with the enactment of Proposition 215, also known as the Compassionate Use Act. Several states followed suit and in 2014, Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational marijuana.
Since then, the smell of marijuana has become a common part of everyday life in many cities, similar to ridesharing and food delivery services. What was once illegal across the board has now been decriminalized for recreational use in 32 states and fully legalized in 21. Every local government has its own regulations on dispensaries, and some cities are more welcoming to marijuana use than others.
24/7 Tempo reviewed a ranking formulated by LawnStarter, a lawn care start-up that frequently conducts research on city and state amenities, to determine the most marijuana-friendly cities in America. The site started with a list of the 200 largest U.S. cities, then narrowed it down to 105 where recreational adult marijuana use is legal. These cities were evaluated across six categories comprising 18 different factors, weighted by importance.
The categories were comprised of these six factors: access (dispensaries, head shops, home grow legality); customer satisfaction (dispensary reviews); convenience (delivery services, credit card acceptance); lounging (cannabis hotels and lounges); entertainment (tours, events); and “munchies” (fast food and cheese availability). Data for these specific factors came from 14 sites like CelebStoner and U.S. News, plus previous LawnStarter studies.
The West Coast, Pacific Northwest, and Southwest regions comprise thirty-three of the 40 cities on our list. This isn’t too surprising, since the counterculture took root in the West in the 1960s – and Washington and Colorado were the first two states to legalize marijuana. Nearly half of the cities here, and three of the top four, are in California. These are the states that consume the most weed.
Here are America’s most weed-friendly big cities by rank
40. Seattle, Washington
- Access rank: 31/105
- Convenience rank: 60/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 49/105
- Overall score: 24.13
39. Fresno, California
- Access rank: 62/105
- Convenience rank: 28/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 39/105
- Overall score: 24.2
38. Scottsdale, Arizona
- Access rank: 73/105
- Convenience rank: 37/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 44/105
- Overall score: 26.1
37. Baltimore, Maryland
- Access rank: 98/105
- Convenience rank: 62/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 5/105
- Overall score: 26.15
36. North Las Vegas, Nevada
- Access rank: 69/105
- Convenience rank: 70/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 4/105
- Overall score: 26.28
35. Escondido, California
- Access rank: 81/105
- Convenience rank: 56/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 9/105
- Overall score: 26.5
34. Boston, Massachusetts
- Access rank: 18/105
- Convenience rank: 56/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 57/105
- Overall score: 26.94
33. Henderson, Nevada
- Access rank: 65/105
- Convenience rank: 66/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 12/105
- Overall score: 27.26
32. Oxnard, California
- Access rank: 44/105
- Convenience rank: 47/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 10/105
- Overall score: 27.53
31. Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Access rank: 11/105
- Convenience rank: 40/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 47/105
- Overall score: 27.59
30. New York, New York
- Access rank: 20/105
- Convenience rank: 40/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 68/105
- Overall score: 27.68
29. San Bernardino, California
- Access rank: 25/105
- Convenience rank: 52/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 13/105
- Overall score: 27.82
28. Thornton, Colorado
- Access rank: 54/105
- Convenience rank: 18/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 27/105
- Overall score: 27.98
27. St. Louis, Missouri
- Access rank: 21/105
- Convenience rank: 62/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 41/105
- Overall score: 28.02
26. Santa Rosa, California
- Access rank: 15/105
- Convenience rank: 59/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 36/105
- Overall score: 28.14
25. Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Access rank: 9/105
- Convenience rank: 46/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 55/105
- Overall score: 28.37
24. Detroit, Michigan
- Access rank: 34/105
- Convenience rank: 52/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 15/105
- Overall score: 28.89
23. Mesa, Arizona
- Access rank: 49/105
- Convenience rank: 62/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 17/105
- Overall score: 29.01
22. Glendale, Arizona
- Access rank: 28/105
- Convenience rank: 50/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 14/105
- Overall score: 30.21
21. Corona, California
- Access rank: 58/105
- Convenience rank: 23/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 8/105
- Overall score: 30.75
20. Moreno Valley, California
- Access rank: 23/105
- Convenience rank: 33/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 6/105
- Overall score: 31.81
19. Pomona, California
- Access rank: 41/105
- Convenience rank: 40/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 7/105
- Overall score: 31.9
18. Riverside, California
- Access rank: 47/105
- Convenience rank: 21/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 2/105
- Overall score: 32.66
17. Phoenix, Arizona
- Access rank: 59/105
- Convenience rank: 55/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 18/105
- Overall score: 32.83
16. Oakland, California
- Access rank: 17/105
- Convenience rank: 3/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 26/105
- Overall score: 33.08
15. Modesto, California
- Access rank: 16/105
- Convenience rank: 47/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 16/105
- Overall score: 33.5
14. Salem, Oregon
- Access rank: 7/105
- Convenience rank: 66/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 30/105
- Overall score: 33.64
13. San Jose, California
- Access rank: 40/105
- Convenience rank: 5/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 11/105
- Overall score: 33.65
12. Sacramento, California
- Access rank: 12/105
- Convenience rank: 1/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 28/105
- Overall score: 36.69
11. Washington, D.C.
- Access rank: 13/105
- Convenience rank: 70/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 22/105
- Overall score: 37.12
10. Eugene, Oregon
- Access rank: 3/105
- Convenience rank: 65/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 35/105
- Overall score: 37.66
9. San Diego, California
- Access rank: 22/105
- Convenience rank: 26/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 20/105
- Overall score: 38.38
8. Torrance, California
- Access rank: 19/105
- Convenience rank: 26/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 1/105
- Overall score: 39.53
7. Portland, Oregon
- Access rank: 5/105
- Convenience rank: 54/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 42/105
- Overall score: 39.95
6. Long Beach, California
- Access rank: 8/105
- Convenience rank: 23/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 19/105
- Overall score: 41.34
5. Las Vegas, Nevada
- Access rank: 10/105
- Convenience rank: 45/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 25/105
- Overall score: 45.21
4. Santa Ana, California
- Access rank: 2/105
- Convenience rank: 16/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 3/105
- Overall score: 49.14
3. Denver, Colorado
- Access rank: 4/105
- Convenience rank: 49/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 31/105
- Overall score: 50.97
2. Los Angeles, California
- Access rank: 6/105
- Convenience rank: 3/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 21/105
- Overall score: 57.5
1. San Francisco, California
- Access rank: 1/105
- Convenience rank: 13/105
- Customer satisfaction rank: 33/105
- Overall score: 59.77