California is a global icon when it comes to cannabis culture and industry. It is home to the famed Emerald Triangle, where some of the world’s best cannabis has been cultivated over many decades, going back to the 1960s.
Medical cannabis was first legalized in California in 1996, making it the first state in the U.S. to adopt a medical cannabis legalization measure. Another major milestone for California’s cannabis scene came in 2016 when voters approved Proposition 64, which legalized cannabis for adult use.
Academic researchers affiliated with the University of California in San Diego recently conducted a survey in which they asked thousands of California adults about their cannabis use. The survey effort was titled ‘Impact 64.’
“Our study provides the first comprehensive understanding of cannabis use patterns in California since the implementation of Proposition 64,” said Linda Hill, M.D., M.P.H., principal investigator of Impact 64, distinguished professor at the UC San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, clinical professor at the School of Medicine and affiliated faculty at the Qualcomm Institute.
Below are some of the most noteworthy findings from the survey’s results:
- 37% of survey participants reported consuming cannabis in the past three months.
- 58% of those participants report consuming cannabis daily, and 40% reported consuming cannabis multiple times per day.
- 77% of cannabis consuming survey participants reported obtaining cannabis products from dispensaries.
So far in 2025, California cannabis consumers have purchased over $1.08 billion worth of legal products from licensed dispensaries, according to the California Department of Cannabis Control. In 2024, California’s legal industry sold over $4.2 billion worth of products, which was down from a record $5.35 billion in 2021.
“There is still much to be learned regarding the evolving world of legalized cannabis, including how it’s being used, by who, and the level of risks it may pose to public safety,” said Thomas Marcotte, Ph.D. co-principal investigator of Impact 64, professor of psychiatry and co-director of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at UC San Diego School of Medicine. “The risk-benefit ratio for cannabis use is complex and warrants further study.”