The short answer

Every state where adult-use cannabis is legal charges a cannabis-specific excise tax, and that tax usually lands somewhere between 10% and 37% of the retail price. Washington tops the list at 37%. Oregon sits at 17%, California at 15%, and Colorado charges 15% at retail plus a 15% wholesale excise. Stack ordinary sales tax on top and a $50 eighth can ring up closer to $70 in Illinois, Washington, or parts of California. Medical cannabis gets a much lighter touch, and roughly a dozen states don't tax it at all.

Three layers, and only one shows on your receipt

Cannabis taxes are rarely a single number. Most legal states stack:

  • Excise tax — a cannabis-only tax, charged either as a percent of the retail price or as a flat amount per ounce or per milligram of THC.
  • Sales tax — the same tax you pay on shampoo, applied on top of the excise.
  • Local options — city and county add-ons that typically run 1% to 3%, sometimes higher.

Some states also tax the grower or the middleman. Colorado applies a 15% excise on wholesale transfers, Nevada a 15% wholesale tax, Illinois a 7% wholesale tax. You never see those lines, but they're already baked into the shelf price before you walk in.

Retail rates by state

Adult-use rates at the register, as of early 2025:

  • Washington — 37% excise, with no separate sales tax on cannabis.
  • Illinois — 10% on flower at 35% THC or less, 20% on infused products, 25% above 35% THC, plus 6.25% state sales tax and local taxes.
  • Oregon — 17% state retail tax. Medical is exempt.
  • Arizona — 16% excise on adult use plus regular sales tax. Medical skips the excise.
  • California — 15% excise plus state and local sales tax. The cultivation tax was repealed in 2022.
  • Colorado — 15% retail marijuana sales tax, 2.9% state sales tax, plus local options.
  • New York — 13% total excise (9% state, 4% local) plus regular sales tax.
  • Massachusetts — 10.75% excise, 6.25% sales tax, up to 3% local.
  • Rhode Island — 10% excise, 7% sales tax, up to 3% local.
  • Nevada — 10% retail excise plus a 15% wholesale tax.
  • Michigan — 10% excise plus 6% sales tax.
  • Montana — 20% adult use, 4% medical.
  • Minnesota — 10% cannabis tax plus standard sales tax.
  • Ohio — 10% excise plus sales tax.
  • Maine — 10% retail tax plus a cultivation tax.
  • Maryland — 9% retail tax, no extra state sales tax on cannabis.
  • Missouri — 6% retail tax plus up to 3% local.
  • New Jersey — 6.625% sales tax plus a per-ounce social equity excise paid by cultivators, and up to 2% local.
  • Connecticut — 6.35% sales tax plus a THC-based excise (roughly $0.00625 per mg for flower) and up to 3% local.
  • Delaware — 15% retail tax, no state sales tax.
  • New Mexico — 12% excise that steps up each year toward 18%.

Medical patients usually pay less

Medical programs are where the savings live. Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, and several other states waive the retail excise for cardholders, and a large group exempts medical cannabis from sales tax entirely. Montana's medical rate is 4% against 20% for everyone else. If you qualify for a card in a legal state, the discount often outweighs the annual fee within a few purchases, though some states have narrowed qualifying conditions since legalization.

Where hemp CBD fits

Hemp-derived CBD sits outside state cannabis tax codes in most places, because those codes define cannabis by THC concentration. A CBD tincture sold online or in a general retail store usually carries only ordinary sales tax, not the 15% or 37% cannabis excise. Two wrinkles worth knowing. Products sold through a state-licensed dispensary are taxed as cannabis regardless of how little THC they contain. And a growing number of states now apply cannabis-style taxes to hemp-derived THC products — Minnesota's 10% cannabis tax, for instance, covers lower-potency hemp edibles sold at retail. Check the state and the product type, not just the store.

Budgeting at the register

To estimate your real total, add the excise first, then apply sales tax to the sum, then add any local percentage. A rough rule: expect 25% to 40% above the sticker in Illinois, Washington, and much of California, and closer to 15% to 20% in Oregon, Michigan, or Missouri. Concentrates and vape carts often land in a higher excise bracket than flower, which is why two products with similar shelf prices can ring up differently.

Rates move every year

New Mexico's excise climbs annually by design. Several states have rebuilt their structures since legalization, and local ballots keep adding new layers. Treat any list, this one included, as a starting point and confirm the current number with your state revenue department before building a budget around it.