Canadian cannabis consumers increasingly preferred legal products, except for price, over 3 years | Research

The takeaway

Three years after legalization, Canadian cannabis consumers viewed legal products as safer and more convenient to buy, but still perceived them as more expensive, with frequent users the most skeptical.

Cannabis regulators, legal cannabis industry, and public health officials monitoring legalization outcomes.

Convenience perception tripled from 2019 to 2021

What the researchers found

By 2021, consumers perceived legal cannabis as safer to buy (54%), more convenient (47.8%), but more expensive (47.2%) than illegal cannabis. Perceptions improved from 2019 to 2021 across all measures except price. Convenience perception tripled (AOR 3.09). More frequent users had less favorable perceptions.

Why it matters

The success of cannabis legalization in displacing the illegal market depends on consumer willingness to buy legal products. This study tracks whether perceptions are shifting in the right direction.

The numbers in context

15,311 consumers. Legal perceived as: safer to buy (54.0%), more convenient (47.8%), more expensive (47.2%), safer to use (46.8%), higher quality (29.3%). Convenience perception: AOR 3.09 from 2019 to 2021. Frequent users had less favorable perceptions across all measures.

How the study worked

Repeat cross-sectional survey from the International Cannabis Policy Study (2019-2021). 15,311 past-12-month Canadian cannabis consumers of legal purchasing age. Weighted logistic regression examined perceptions by province, year, and use frequency.

What this study cannot tell us

Self-reported perceptions may not reflect actual purchasing behavior. Online panel may underrepresent some demographics. Provincial policy differences may confound national trends.

How to read the evidence

Moderate: large repeat cross-sectional survey with consistent methodology, but perceptions rather than behavior.

When this study was published

Published in 2022.

The bigger picture

The steady improvement in legal cannabis perceptions suggests the regulated market is gaining ground, but the persistent price gap and the skepticism of heavy users indicate challenges remain.

Questions still open

Will price competitiveness ever match the illegal market? Can quality perception improvements continue without direct comparison marketing? Why do frequent users remain most skeptical?

Common questions

Do Canadians prefer legal cannabis?

Increasingly, yes. By 2021, most consumers viewed legal cannabis as safer to buy (54%) and nearly half found it more convenient (48%). But most still perceived it as more expensive, and only 29% rated it as higher quality.

Are frequent users different?

Yes. More frequent cannabis consumers had less favorable perceptions of legal products across all measures, suggesting the legal market has more work to do to win over its heaviest customers.

Has the perception trend been positive?

Yes. Between 2019 and 2021, perceptions of legal cannabis improved across all measures except the safety of purchasing, which was already high.

Read the original research

Consumer perceptions of legal cannabis products in Canada, 2019-2021: a repeat cross-sectional study.

BMC public health, 22(1), 2048

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

Wadsworth, Elle; Fataar, Fathima; Goodman, Samantha; Smith, Danielle M; Renard, Justine; Gabrys, Robert; Jesseman, Rebecca; Hammond, David. (2022). Consumer perceptions of legal cannabis products in Canada, 2019-2021: a repeat cross-sectional study.. BMC public health, 22(1), 2048. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-14492-z