≋✺Ranking Cannabis in the U.S. | Best & Worst States for Weed Culture & Quality
- Kiing Curry
- Jun 19
- 4 min read
≋✺Ranking Cannabis in the U.S. | Best & Worst States for Weed Culture & Quality
≋✺Ranking Cannabis in the U.S.: Culture, Capital, and the Body
Cannabis in the United States is not one thing.
It is not one culture.
It is not one standard.
It is not even one experience.
What you get depends on where you are— the laws, the people, the intention behind the grow, and whether the plant is being treated as medicine, commodity, or afterthought.
I’ve engaged cannabis across multiple states, in different conditions—stability, transition, survival.
This is not a ranking based on hype.
This is a ranking based on:
how the plant is treated
how the culture holds it
how it actually lands in the body
And how it moves through the Six Waters.
Oregon
— culture, commitment, and care
Oregon stays at number one.
Not because it’s perfect, but because it is one of the few places that still treats cannabis as something more than product.
There is a real commitment to plant medicine and wellness being integrated into daily life.
Not as performance.
Not as trend.
As practice.
Budtenders in Portland are part of that ecosystem. My engagement with them is what pushed me deeper into this work.
There is love for the flower there.
And that matters.
You feel it in:
the way strains are handled
the way recommendations are given
the way the plant is spoken about
Even innovation—like infused pre-rolls—feels intentional. I’ve never found one anywhere else that matched what I experienced in Portland.
And then there’s price.
Oregon is one of the only places where you can find:
high-quality cannabis at prices that don’t feel like punishment
Shops like Green Muse (Black Owned) hold that balance—culture, care, accessibility.
River because the experience moves.
Deep Water because it actually holds you once you get there.
Colorado
— foundation and variety
Water: River → Still
Colorado holds its place because of consistency and depth.
It was one of the early states to legalize, and that shows in:
infrastructure
variety
cultural familiarity with cannabis
There is still a visible thread of:
cannabis as plant medicine
Even within commercialization.
Dispensaries like Native Roots stand out not just for product, but for how they’ve approached branding and customer experience.
River in its movement and availability.
Still in its stability—even when it’s not pushing forward.
Michigan
— access, possibility, and chaos
Water: Current → River (when you find it)
Michigan continues to impress me.
It’s where I can most consistently access cannabis at a price point that allows for actual use—not rationing, not stretching, not scarcity.
Michigan feels like the wild west.
There are dispensaries everywhere. New ones opening constantly.
That brings:
access
competition
opportunity
But also:
inconsistency
gaps in knowledge
They haven’t hit their stride yet.
You have to do your own research.
You have to trust your own body.
Dispensaries like Exclusive Cannabis and Dank Garden 313 (Black Owned) are cool options.
Current because it moves fast, sometimes without direction.
River when you find the right grow, the right batch, the right alignment.
California
— saturation and performance
Water: Boil → Current (without grounding)
California is oversaturated.
What was once leading has become:
capital-heavy
trend-driven
disconnected from the body
In my experience, there were no real bright spots.
Cannabis purchasing became about survival:
cheapest option
opening discounts
navigating absurd pricing
The plant felt secondary.
Gorilla Rx (Black Owned) is my dispensary rec here.
Boil in its intensity and overwhelm.
Current in its movement—but without grounding, without holding.
One thing I will say—California is doing something interesting when it comes to those entheogenic churches that have been emerging.
There’s a different relationship forming there around plant medicine that isn’t confined to dispensaries or traditional cannabis systems.
It’s not fully regulated, not fully understood, and not always accessible—but it is expanding the conversation beyond just weed as product.
That’s a separate ecosystem - fungi tings
And it deserves its own essay.
New York
— emerging, uneven, in-between
Water: Still → Current
New York sits in the middle.
Mostly delivery-based experiences:
decent
not memorable
not offensive
It feels like a market still forming its identity.
Platforms like Medly offer access beyond just cannabis, which stands out.
Still because it hasn’t fully moved yet.
Current in pockets—where something begins to form.
Washington
— expensive and disconnected
Water: Still (stagnant edge)
Washington was never a primary destination.
We went for specific products, not the flower.
The cost is higher.
The experience feels less grounded.
The marketing feels off.
With Portland right there, there was no reason to stay.
Still—but not the clarity kind. The kind where nothing is really moving.
Missouri
— brief, but promising
Water: Spring (emerging)
Missouri is still unfolding.
A single experience at a Black-owned dispensary Luxury Leaf stood out— and that matters.
There’s not enough data to fully place it yet.
But there is something there.
Spring—the beginning of movement, not yet defined.
Washington, DC
— legal fiction
Water: Boil (system-induced)
DC is a mess.
You are forced into performance:
“buying art”
navigating legal loopholes
participating in something everyone understands but no one names
It’s not about the plant.
It’s about surviving the system.
Boil—not from the cannabis, but from the structure around it.
Illinois
— expensive and uninspired
Water: Still → Flat
I have a deep disdain for Chicago cannabis.
High prices.
Mediocre quality.
Consistently underwhelming.
I was bored.
And boredom with cannabis is telling.
Still without clarity.
Flat without dimension.
Ohio
— control without culture
Water: Boil → Stagnation
Ohio is a mess.
Overly controlled.
Underdeveloped culture.
Selling in tenths. ( I felt like I was back in Macon with nick sacks)
Late to recreational.
Minimal education around the plant.
I have a medical card here, and even that process exposes the gaps.
You can get approval through Groupon— which tells you everything about the disconnect.
No real providers.
No real guidance.
Boil from restriction and misunderstanding.
Stagnation from lack of movement and care.
Closing
Every state carries a different water.
Some move.
Some hold.
Some overwhelm.
Some haven’t even begun to flow.
But the body always knows.
≋✺Ranking Cannabis in the U.S. | Best & Worst States for Weed Culture & Quality
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