2023’s Best (and Worst) Cities for Weed

According to the results of a collaborative survey by Real Estate Witch and Leafly, the most weed-friendly city in 2023 is no longer Denver, CO. It’s Portland, Oregon. 

Why, you may ask? For one, cannabis products are fully legal (for recreational as well as medicinal use). For another, Portland has 13.7 cannabis dispensaries per 100K residents—4.5 times the average city’s 3.1 dispensaries. 

Portland also has the lowest price per ounce of high-quality weed at $210—34% less than the national average ($316). 

Read on to learn more about the best (and worst) cities for weed in 2023. 

Weed survey highlights

Thirty-eight of the 50 states have legalized cannabis for medical use, but so far, only 20 have said yes to recreational use. 

While Portland ranks at the top of the weed-friendly list, public perception favors three California cities—all of which are in the top 10. Over half (58%) of Americans think Los Angeles is the best city for stoners, followed by San Diego (45%) and Sacramento (42%). 

Baltimore gets the “most improved” award, rising from #25 to #5 on the list after Maryland residents voted to legalize cannabis for recreational use last November (2022). 

Among the cities where marijuana is fully legal—meaning for recreational as well as medicinal use—Richmond, VA ranks as the least weed-friendly, followed by Virginia Beach and Washington, D.C. 

High-quality weed doesn’t come cheap, with the average price per ounce at $316. Portland has the most affordable ounce at $210 ($106 less than the average), while Washington, D.C., for the second straight year, has the highest price at $590 an ounce—87% higher than the average. 

Portland pot tourists (‘cause that’s probably a thing) can get medium-quality weed for $187, which is $65 less than the average price among the 50 cities studied. 

Oklahoma City, OK, where cannabis is legal only for medicinal use, has the highest number of dispensaries per 100,000 residents at 48.7—nearly 16 times more than the average (3.1). Oklahoma City also has the highest number of cannabis-prescribing doctors at 2 per 100K residents—six times the studied city average. 

San Jose, CA, ranking at #12 on the list, has 19.4 Taco Bells per 100K residents to ensure cannabis users have a place to go when the munchies hit (and they will). 

That said, Portland has its own cannabis cafes and food tours—like the Potlandia Experience— plus 77% more Taco Bells than the average city (11.2 per 100,000 residents) for stoners in dire need of a taco fix. 

Birmingham, AL, while it’s the only city among the bottom ten where cannabis is legal for medicinal use, is still, according to 25% of Americans, the least weed-friendly city in 2023. 

Ranking criteria

While the Real Estate Witch–Leafly survey takes a long list of ranking criteria into account, we’ll focus on these eleven:

1. Legality (fully legal, legal for medicinal purposes, or 100% illegal)
2. Cannabis-prescribing doctors per 100,000 residents
3. Cannabis dispensaries per 100,000 residents
4. Price of 1 oz high-quality weed
5. Affordability of high-quality weed
6. Price of 1 oz medium-quality weed 
7. Affordability of medium-quality weed
8. Number of Taco Bells per 100,000 residents (because munchies)
9. Concert venues per 100,000 residents
10. Number of local hiking trails (according to the AllTrails database)
11. Public perception score

The 15 best cities for weed

The top 15 weed-friendly cities, based on their ranking criteria scores, are these:

1. Portland, OR
2. Denver, CO
3. Buffalo, NY
4. Seattle, WA
5. Baltimore, MD
6. Las Vegas, NV
7. Sacramento, CA
8. San Diego, CA
9. Los Angeles, CA
10. San Francisco, CA
11. Boston, MA
12. San Jose, CA
13. Phoenix, AZ
14. Detroit, MI 
15. Hartford, CT

Oklahoma City, OK, where pot is legal only for medical use but which has the highest number of dispensaries per 100K residents (48.7), ranks at #18. 

When it comes to public opinion, according to a poll of 1,000 adults, Americans see California as one of the most weed-friendly states, with five Golden State cities on their top ten list. 

America’s favorite cities for weed

1. Los Angeles, CA (with 58% rating it as a top-five weed-friendly city)
2. San Diego, CA (45%)
3. Sacramento, CA (42%)
4. San Francisco, CA (41%)
5. Denver, CO (27%)
6. San Jose, CA (26%)
7. Phoenix, AZ (24%)
8. Birmingham, AL (17%) 
9. Miami, FL (14%)
10. Las Vegas, NV (12%)

Number eight is a bit of a surprise considering Birmingham ranks as the least weed-friendly city among the studied 50, putting it at the top of the list of worst cities for pot-lovers. 

Top ten worst cities for weed

1. Birmingham, AL
2. Memphis, TN
3. Louisville, KY
4. Milwaukee, WI
5. Indianapolis, IN
6. Nashville, TN
7. Charlotte, NC
8. Houston, TX
9. Atlanta, GA
10. San Antonio, TX

Read the full report for the survey methodology and more details on each of the most weed-friendly cities. We promise it’s worth a look. 

Top takeaways for real estate agents

If you serve one of the best cities for weed, you might provide this information to clients who show an interest in moving there in search of a more cannabis-friendly locale. 

Some metros, like Minneapolis, MN, have legalized low-dose THC gummies and seltzers. And while Minnesota is considering a bill that would legalize marijuana for recreational use, for the time being, Minneapolis ranks at #40 on the list. 

Bottom line, it can’t hurt to know the impact of cannabis on your local real estate market. And in weed-friendly cities, keep this info handy in case you meet any weed-curious prospective clients.