Cannabis legalization sweeping the country has led to a situation that once seemed unthinkable: The majority of Americans now live in a country where there is a legal cannabis dispensary, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center. That neighborhood cannabis dispensary may sell medical marijuana, recreational marijuana, or both.

The Pew Research Center based the findings on analysis of state marijuana laws as reported by the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, U.S. population statistics, and marijuana dispensary locations from SafeGraph. The report includes dispensaries that sell cannabis for medical or recreational use.

“Marijuana is illegal under federal law, but most Americans now live in a state that has legalized the drug,” the report stated. And most also have at least one cannabis dispensary in their county, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis.

The Pew Research Findings on Neighborhood Cannabis Dispensaries

The Pew Research Center report covers a wide variety of issues around the prevalence of cannabis in American life, just a decade after Colorado and Washington became the first states to sell legal cannabis. The data revealed the following:

• 54% of Americans reside in a state where marijuana is legally permissible for recreational use.
• 74% of Americans dwell in a state where marijuana enjoys legal status for either recreational or medical purposes, with California leading the charge as the first state to legalize medical marijuana back in 1996.
• 79% of Americans inhabit counties boasting at least one cannabis dispensary.
• Across the United States, there are close to 15,000 cannabis dispensaries. These establishments, specializing in the sale of cannabis products, are prevalent not only on the West Coast and Northeast but also in inland states such as Michigan, Oklahoma, and Colorado.
• California boasts the highest number of dispensaries nationwide, with 3,659 counted at the time of this analysis, more than twice the number found in the second-ranking state. A significant proportion of all marijuana dispensaries in the U.S. are situated in California, where nearly all residents (99.5%) have access to a dispensary within their county. Remarkably, Los Angeles County alone hosts more dispensaries (1,481) than any state other than California itself.
• Oklahoma leads the nation in dispensaries per capita, with 36 dispensaries for every 100,000 residents.

Survey Reflects Growing Acceptance of Legal Cannabis

Following the landmark legislation passed in 2012 by Colorado and Washington, the count now stands at 24 states (along with the District of Columbia) that have embraced the recreational use of marijuana (as of February 2024). Additionally, another 14 states have sanctioned the drug strictly for medical purposes.

Among the remaining 12 states, there’s a legal framework in place that permits restricted access to cannabis products containing minimal to no THC, the primary psychoactive compound in marijuana, such as CBD oil. Furthermore, across the spectrum of legalization, 27 states have implemented measures to decriminalize recreational marijuana usage.

The report noted that recent surveys have shown a vast majority of Americans favor legalizing cannabis. This includes a Gallup survey from the fall of 2023 that found the largest amount of support ever for cannabis legalization.