Recreational cannabis sales set record high

Connecticut cannabis retail sales reached a new record high in August, approaching $18 million, while the average price per gram for cannabis fell.

According to data collected and shared by the Department of Consumer Protection, cannabis retailers sold $17,989,385 of adult-use products in August. That number marks the best sales month for recreational cannabis since its sale became legal in January 2023. It surpasses a record $17,175,026 in sales of adult-use cannabis products sold in December 2023.

Sales of adult-use cannabis have increased each month between June and August after declining in January 2024 for the first time since adult-use retail cannabis became available.

There were approximately 467,000 adult-use products sold in August, an increase from roughly 419,000 sold the previous month. That figure sets another monthly record for the number of adult-use products sold, surpassing the previous high of roughly 454,000 products sold in December 2023.

At the same time as sales increased, the average price per gram of cannabis fell by roughly 50 cents between July and August. In July, the average price per gram for usable cannabis was $12.16 and it fell to $11.61 in August. That figure includes both prices for adult use and medical marijuana. The price of cannabis peaked at $12.51 in March of this year. Last month marks the first time the average price per gram has fallen below $12 since then and is the cheapest per gram since December 2023.

The average price per product did increase slightly in August, rising to $38.57 from $38.24 in the previous month. To date, the average price per adult-use product was highest in October 2023, at $37.77 per product, and highest in January 2023, at $44.61 per product, when adult-use cannabis first became available.

Connecticut’s cannabis sales continue to lag behind neighboring Massachusetts, however. While state-level August sales data is not yet available from the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, weekly sales data indicates that retailers sold almost $13 million in buds last week alone. In August, adult-use retailers sold $137 million worth of product. The price per gram of cannabis also continues to be lower in Massachusetts, at $5.06 in June.

Connecticut’s adult-use numbers do outpace Rhode Island, where retailers sold $8.23 million in adult-use products last month, its highest-grossing month since adult-use cannabis became available to purchase in January 2024.

The sale of medical marijuana increased slightly between July and August but continued to be below those of previous months and well below the sale of adult-use products.

The sale of medical marijuana products totaled roughly $7.7 million in August, with roughly 221,000 products sold, amounting to roughly $1,000,000 more in sales and 2,000 products more products sold than in July.

Medical marijuana sales peaked in March 2023, with approximately $9.5 million in sales and 339,000 products sold. Sales have been declining since then, with occasional rises. However, trends in the average price per product roughly reflect those of adult-use products, with medical products costing less since October 2023. In August, the average price per medical marijuana product was $34.95.

Connecticut’s medical marijuana sales are also surpassed by Massachusetts, which had $15.4 million in sales in June. Connecticut’s medical marijuana sales remain above Rhode Island, which sold $.201 million worth of medical marijuana products in August.

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