Business
Ohio Dispensaries Sell Over $1 Billion in Legal Marijuana in 2025
Published
on January 22, 2026
Ohio dispensaries sold more than $1 billion worth of legal marijuana in 2025, marking the first full year of recreational cannabis sales in the state.
According to the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Cannabis Control, recreational sales totaled $836 million, while medical marijuana sales added $233 million, bringing the combined total to $1.09 billion as of January 3, 2026.
Recreational cannabis sales officially began in August 2024, with the state recording over $242 million in sales during the partial year. Medical marijuana, which launched on January 14, 2019, has now generated more than $2.29 billion in total sales.
Average prices for marijuana have slightly decreased year-over-year. The average price for manufactured products was $23.83 for the week ending January 3, compared to $26.66 for the same week in 2025.
Dispensaries and Access
Ohio currently has 190 dual-use dispensaries, which are licensed to sell both medical and recreational marijuana. However, access is limited in many areas: more than 130 municipalities and townships have enacted moratoriums on adult-use cannabis sales as of December 2025, according to Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law.
Senate Bill 56: New Restrictions
In December 2025, Governor Mike DeWine (R) signed Senate Bill 56 into law, making significant changes to Ohio’s voter-approved recreational marijuana program. Key provisions include:
- Reducing THC levels in adult-use extracts from 90% to 70%
- Capping THC in adult-use flower at 35%
- Prohibiting smoking in most public spaces
- Criminalizing possession of marijuana outside its original packaging
- Making it illegal to transport legally purchased marijuana from another state
- Requiring drivers to store marijuana in the trunk
- Removing certain anti-discrimination protections related to housing, employment, and organ donation
- Allowing police to establish probable cause during traffic stops if someone is a known marijuana user
The bill also bans intoxicating hemp products and introduces stricter regulatory measures across the adult-use market.
Ohioans for Cannabis Choice Push for Referendum
In response, Ohioans for Cannabis Choice has launched a referendum effort to block the new law. Organizers submitted initial signatures, which now must be verified by Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) and certified as truthful by Attorney General Dave Yost (R).
If the petition passes these initial hurdles, the group will begin canvassing to collect 6% of total votes cast in the most recent gubernatorial election—roughly 248,092 signatures—and at least 3% turnout in 44 of Ohio’s 88 counties. Petitioners have 90 days from the date the governor filed the law with the secretary to complete signature collection.
The last successful referendum in Ohio occurred in 2011, when voters overturned an anti-collective bargaining law.
Ohio’s legal cannabis market has now entered a new phase—boasting billion-dollar sales while navigating regulatory uncertainty and a potential voter challenge to recent legislation.
This story was first published by Ahmed Rasfiyan
