How Gen Z’s Buying Habits Are Reshaping the Cannabis Industry

In just a few years, Gen Z has gone from “future cannabis consumer” to one of the most important forces in the legal market. Their preferences—tech-first shopping, functional products, and values-driven brands—are quietly rewriting how cannabis is grown, packaged, and sold.

From Emerging Segment to Power Buyer

Data from Headset and other analytics firms show that Millennials and Gen Z together now account for well over 60% of cannabis purchases, with Gen Z the fastest-growing cohort in both the U.S. and Canada. READ MORE: Headset

In earlier Headset reports, Gen Z made up roughly 16–17% of tracked U.S. cannabis sales, but that share has been climbing year over year as more of the generation reaches legal age. One 2024 snapshot estimated Gen Z at about 10% of the total user base but rising quickly.

The key point: this isn’t just “one more age group.” Each year, more Gen Z consumers age into legality, and their tastes are very different from the early adult-use pioneers of the 2010s.

What Gen Z Buys: Vapes, Beverages, and “Functional” Cannabis

Compared with older generations, Gen Z has a distinctly different basket:

  • Heavy on vapes and drinkables. One 2024 consumer survey found that 55% of Gen Z THC users opt for vape cartridges and 21% choose THC-infused beverages, significantly higher than the averages across all THC users. MORE ABOUT: Cannabis Industry Data
  • Early love for concentrates. Even back in 2020, Headset data showed 31% of Gen Z baskets contained a concentrate, compared with 23% for other generations—signaling comfort with higher-potency formats.
  • Very vape-forward overall. More recent data indicates Gen Z and Millennials together account for nearly 71% of all vape pen sales in the U.S. MORE ABOUT: Vice

At the same time, Gen Z is helping push low-dose edibles, beverages, and wellness-oriented products. Retailers and marketing studies note that younger adults are more likely to choose gummies, drinks, tinctures, and topicals aimed at sleep, anxiety, or recovery instead of just getting as high as possible. MORE ABOUT: MJBizDaily

That’s influencing the market:

  • BDSA reports cannabis beverages still make up under 1% of total sales, but beverage sales grew about 15% between Q1 2024 and Q1 2025, outpacing many traditional categories. STATS HERE: BDSA
  • Edibles with minor cannabinoids like CBN and CBG—pitched for sleep or specific effects—now command premium prices and are expected to keep growing. MORE ABOUT: Cannabis Tech

For Gen Z, cannabis is increasingly about precision and function: sleeping better, easing stress, focusing, or socializing without feeling wrecked the next day.

Intentional, Research-Driven, and Less Impulsive

Retailers across the U.S. report that Gen Z shoppers do more homework before buying. A 2025 analysis described them as approaching cannabis “with more intention, more research, and more caution than many of the shoppers who came before them.” MORE HERE: CannabisNewsWire

Headset and other data platforms also note that:

  • Gen Z and Millennials spend less per basket than Gen X or Boomers—around $55 per transaction on average—but shop more frequently and are highly responsive to deals and loyalty programs.
  • They care about potency and price, but also pay attention to lab results, ingredients, and brand reputation, especially around safety and transparency.

Add in the fact that many Gen Z consumers are replacing or reducing alcohol with cannabis—choosing gummies or drinks over beer or hard seltzer—and you get a group that treats cannabis more like a wellness or lifestyle purchase than a vice.

Digital-First: How Gen Z Actually Shops

Gen Z is the first generation of truly digitally native cannabis consumers. For them, the dispensary is just one touchpoint among many:

  • They expect a “technology-first, personalized, seamless” shopping experience, often starting online with menus, filters, and reviews before they ever set foot in a store.
  • Many prefer online ordering for pickup or delivery, whether through brand sites, marketplace platforms, or retailer apps—similar to how they order food or rideshare.
  • Social media and content—TikTok, Instagram, Discord, Reddit—play a huge role in discovering brands, strains, and formats, even when direct cannabis advertising is restricted.

For retailers, this has meant investing heavily in:

  • Robust e-commerce menus and mobile experiences
  • Better product education online (blogs, explainer videos, terpene charts)
  • Integrated loyalty apps, text marketing, and personalized offers

Stores that still rely on chalkboard menus and word of mouth risk losing Gen Z entirely.

How Gen Z Is Reshaping the Industry

All of this adds up to real structural change:

  1. Product Mix Is Shifting
    • Demand for vapes, beverages, low-dose edibles, and functional formulations keeps rising, nudging brands to innovate beyond classic eighths and brownies.
    • Producers are investing in nano-emulsions, minor cannabinoids, and targeted effects (sleep, creative focus, post-workout relief) because that’s where Gen Z is spending.
  2. Retail Design and Layout Are Changing
    • Stores are reorganizing around effects, use-cases, and easy comparison tools rather than just “indica/sativa” or brand walls.
    • Many are adding self-service kiosks, digital displays, and education stations, so tech-comfortable shoppers can explore at their own pace.
  3. Marketing and Brand Building Look Different
    • Flashy, high-THC branding alone doesn’t cut it: Gen Z wants authentic stories, social impact, sustainability, and clear information.
    • Brands are leaning into lab transparency, environmental credentials, social-equity partnerships, and responsible-use messaging to earn long-term loyalty.
  4. Competition With Alcohol Is Real
    • Beverage makers and analysts now openly track cannabis as a competitor for Gen Z’s “fun money”, noting how younger adults drink less than previous generations.
    • Cannabis companies, in turn, are building social, sessionable products—like low-dose drinks and gummies—that occupy the same occasions as beer and cocktails.

So, Has Gen Z Really Changed Cannabis?

Yes—noticeably.

In just a few years, Gen Z has pushed the industry toward:

  • More tech-driven retail and delivery
  • More functional, low-dose, and wellness-oriented products
  • More transparency and values-driven branding

They may not yet outspend Millennials in total dollars, but their share of sales is rising every year, and their expectations are setting the standard for what modern cannabis shopping looks like. READ MORE ABOUT: Paybotic Financial

For operators, the message is simple: design your products, menus, and experiences for a digital-native, research-obsessed, wellness-minded customer—or risk getting left behind as Gen Z’s influence grows with every new birthday that crosses the legal line.