Where Can I Buy Legal Recreational Cannabis in Canada?

Introduction

Updated May 01, 2019

In this feature article, you will discover where you can buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada safely and securely that’s near you. We will break it down province-by-province and explain how each province will handle their rules and regulations when it comes to where you can buy retail recreational cannabis in Canada. This article also explains recreational cannabis vs medical marijuana, what they are and what is allowed.

Additionally, we discuss “buy weed online in  Canada” – where? –  is it safe and secure? –  and how that popular search term with online medical marijuana dispensaries in Canada will get fiercely competitive in the retail recreational cannabis space. And finally, we will show off our stuff and explain how Budhub Canada can help you navigate through this vast wonderland of cannabis in Canada.

Contents

> What is legal recreational cannabis in Canada and what’s allowed?

> Province-by-province breakdown on where you can buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada.

> Where you can buy weed online in Canada from online medical marijuana dispensaries.

> Buy weed online Canada – the future of online weed sales discussion.

> Is it safe and secure to buy recreational cannabis in Canada online?

> Navigating through the vast wonderland of cannabis in Canada with Budhub.

What is legal recreational cannabis in Canada and what’s allowed?

Recreational Cannabis vs Medical Marijuana

Legal recreational cannabis in Canada is a federal legal framework called the Cannabis Act (Bill C-45) that controls the production, distribution, sale, and possession of cannabis Canada wide. This new legal framework takes a public health approach to cannabis legalization and regulation.

The new law will help:

• Better prevent youth from accessing cannabis.
• Displace the illegal cannabis market.
• Protect public health and safety with product quality and safety requirements for cannabis.

Medical marijuana is currently legal in Canada if you are authorized by a health professional and registered with a licensed producer or Health Canada. Access to cannabis for medical purposes will continue to be permitted after the Cannabis Act comes into force.

Health Canada remains committed to maintaining a distinct system to provide patients with reasonable access to cannabis for medical purposes. Under the new Cannabis Act, individuals will still be able to:

• Purchase cannabis directly from a federally licensed producer.
• Register to produce a limited amount of cannabis for their own medical purposes.
• Designate someone to produce it for them.

Legal recreational cannabis in Canada allows Canadians to:

• Purchase fresh or dried cannabis and cannabis oils.
• Purchase marijuana plants and seeds for growing weed at home from either a provincially or territorially regulated retailer, or — where that option is not available — directly from a federally licensed producer online.
• Grow up to four plants at home (four plants total per household) for personal use.
• Possess up to 30 grams of dried legal cannabis or its equivalent in public.
• Share up to 30 grams (or its equivalent) of legal cannabis and legal cannabis products with other adults.
• Prepare various cannabis products (such as edibles) at home for personal use, provided that no dangerous organic solvents are used in the process.

Source: The Government of Canada

Province-by-province breakdown on where you can buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada

Icon for cannabis in Canada by The Chronic Beaver

Discovering where you can buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada that’s near you from a retail cannabis storefront or if you prefer to buy weed online is going to be a new experience for the Canadian public.

Shopping for recreational cannabis locally or online and learning how and where to buy the best weed that’s right for you is going to be a new and fun experience as well for most Canadians.

Canadians will be overloaded with options as the cannabis marketplace is becoming a vast wonderland in Canada. Options from locating and deciding which retail cannabis storefronts or pot shops have the best buds, marijuana oils, and budtenders, to the best provincial operated pot shops, to buying weed online in Canada.

Reviews of cannabis retailers will be an important resource for the Canadian public to help make better-informed decisions on the best places to buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada that’s near them.

Province-by-province breakdown

Each Province and territory will have the ability to set its own rules and regulations for legal recreational cannabis in Canada, including:

• legal minimum age,
• where you can buy it,
• where you can use it,
• how much you can possess,
• how and where you can grow your own

Government of Canada link to their provincial breakdown

You must respect the laws of the province, territory or Indigenous community you are in, whether you are a visitor or live there. Individual municipalities may also pass bylaws to regulate the use of cannabis locally. Check your municipality for local information.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in British Columbia?

British Columbia has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in BC through public and private retail cannabis storefronts. Online recreational cannabis sales in BC will be managed and operated by the province only with no privately owned online shops. Retail licenses won’t be approved without the support of local governments. Retailers will not be permitted to sell weed in stores that sell liquor or tobacco.

• Buy Legal Weed Online British Columbia – B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch website
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in British Columbia with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Alberta?

Alberta has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 18. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Alberta through private retail cannabis storefronts. Online recreational cannabis sales in Alberta will be managed and operated by the province only with no privately owned online shops. Private operators will be subject to extensive background checks and will have to be physically separate from stores selling alcohol, tobacco or pharmaceuticals. Retail cannabis storefronts will not be allowed to sell anything but cannabis and cannabis-related products. The province expects to issue 250 licenses in the first year. Cannabis stores will have to be 100 meters away from schools and health-care facilities.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Alberta – Alberta Cannabis
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Alberta with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Saskatchewan?

Saskatchewan has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Saskatchewan through private retail cannabis storefronts and those private retailers will have the option to operate an online store. About 60 retail recreational cannabis permits have been awarded to private operators in as many as 40 municipalities and First Nations communities. The Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority will regulate cannabis sales and municipalities will have the option to ban sales. Saskatchewan is banning consumption in public places.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Saskatchewan – Private retailers are allowed to sell product through their websites.
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Saskatchewan with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Manitoba?

Manitoba has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19, a year later than the legal age for drinking alcohol. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Manitoba through private retail cannabis storefronts and online cannabis sales will be left to the private sector in Manitoba. The provincial government wants 90% of Manitobans to be able to access legal cannabis within a 30-minute drive or less within two years of legalization (Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg). The Liquor and Gaming Authority of Manitoba will regulate the sale of cannabis and municipal governments will have the option to ban sales by referendum.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Manitoba – Private retailers are allowed to sell product through their websites.
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Manitoba with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Ontario?

Ontario has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Ontario through private retail cannabis storefronts starting April 1, 2019. However, effective October 17, 2018, you will be able to buy recreational cannabis online in Ontario through the province’s government-run Ontario Cannabis Store that will control 100% of Ontario’s online retail cannabis sales. The new system announced by the new Progressive Conservative government reverses the previous Liberal administration’s plan to distribute cannabis through publicly owned outlets only with no cannabis privatization in Ontario.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Ontario – Ontario Cannabis Store
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you Ontario with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Quebec?

Quebec has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 18 (could change to 21). You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Quebec through a subsidiary of the provincially run liquor board only. Quebec also plans to control recreational cannabis sales online. It would be illegal to cultivate pot for personal or commercial use unless authorized, and possession in a home is limited to 150 grams of dried cannabis and 30 grams on a person.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Québec – Société québécoise du cannabis (SQDC) website
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Quebec with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in New Brunswick?

New Brunswick has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in New Brunswick through a subsidiary of the province’s liquor commission. There will be no private sales of recreational cannabis in New Brunswick, all retail cannabis sales for both online and at retail storefronts are controlled by the province’s liquor commission. The province also plans to require users to lock away their marijuana when it’s in their home.

• Buy Legal Weed Online New Brunswick – Cannabis NB
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in New Brunswick with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Prince Edward Island (PEI)?

PEI has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in PEI through stand-alone retail cannabis stores that are run separately by the PEI liquor commission. The liquor commission also plans to provide online sales and the province plans to restrict marijuana use to private residences.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Prince Edward Island – PEI Cannabis Corp.
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in PEI with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Nova Scotia?

Nova Scotia has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Nova Scotia alongside alcohol in nine provincial liquor commission stores, as well as through online sales by the Nova Scotia government. Nova Scotia plans to establish provincial penalties for youth possession of up to five grams.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Nova Scotia – Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC) 
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Nova Scotia with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Newfoundland and Labrador?

Newfoundland and Labrador have set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Newfoundland and Labrador in private recreational cannabis storefronts. The Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC) will establish an online cannabis store and any other private stores will have to be permitted first through cabinet and then by the NLC. The Crown-owned liquor corporation is to oversee distribution to private cannabis retailers. Consumption is restricted to private residences.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Newfoundland and Labrador – CannabisNL
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Newfoundland and Labrador with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in the Yukon?

Yukon has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption, possession, and cultivation to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Yukon in private recreational cannabis storefronts. The Yukon Liquor Corporation (YLC) would be responsible for the distribution of cannabis. The YLC will establish an online cannabis store, and you will not be able to purchase from other online sites for delivery to a Yukon address. Consumption would be limited to privately-owned residences and adjoining property, where permitted by the owner, while providing for the potential to allow consumption in other spaces in the future.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Yukon – Cannabis Yukon
• Find legal recreational cannabis stores near you in Yukon with Budhub Canada.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in The Northwest Territories?

The Northwest Territories has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in The Northwest Territories at existing liquor stores. The NWT Liquor Commission will be responsible for distribution and sales and residents will be able to order recreational cannabis online to allow access to marijuana in communities that do not have a liquor store. Smoking cannabis is to be permitted in public where cigarettes are allowed, including trails and parks unless they are being used for public events.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Northwest Territories – Liquor and Cannabis Commission

Legal recreational cannabis stores in The Northwest Territories:

• Yellowknife — Yellowknife Liquor Store, 100 Borden Dr.
• Norman Wells — Normal Wells Liquor Agency, 15 Franklin Ave.
• Hay River — Hay River Liquor Retailer, 101-76 Capital Dr.
• Fort Smith — Fort Smith Liquor Store, Breynat St.
• Fort Simpson — Fort Simpson Beverages, 10021 100th St.

Where can I buy legal recreational cannabis in Nunavut?

Nunavut has set the minimum legal age of cannabis consumption to 19. You will be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Nunavut online first, private storefronts could come later. At first, Nunavut’s Liquor and Cannabis commission will reach out to online retailers in other provinces on an initial two-year contract to sell cannabis to Nunavummiut,  later on a competitive government tender will be considered. This is because there are no licensed retailers set-up in Nunavut currently. Private cannabis stores and lounges will be permitted in Nunavut, subject to a community consultation process. If existing stores, like the Northern stores and Arctic Co-ops, want to sell cannabis, they will have to go through the consultation process community by community. They will not receive a blanket store license.

• Buy Legal Weed Online Nunavut – Nunavut Liquor & Cannabis Commission

Buy weed online Canada – the future of online weed sales discussion

The future of online cannabis sales in Canada is in a for a shakeup, well for the short-term anyhow. Existing online medical marijuana dispensaries who are operating on the edges of the law are faced with some challenges when recreational cannabis legalization commences. Lots of questions are raised with no real clear answers as of yet, I’ll cover more on this shortly.

Right now you can buy weed online in Canada from online medical marijuana dispensaries even before cannabis in Canada is officially legalized for recreational use. It’s quite easy and safe to order medical marijuana online and have it delivered to you anywhere in Canada, some online dispensaries only require you to upload your proof of age document like a drivers license. While others require you to go through the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR), a federal program Health Canada has created to allow patients safe access to medicinal cannabis.

There are over 100 different Licensed Producers across Canada who are qualified by Health Canada to produce and provide medical cannabis, they each require a “Medical Document” signed by a Medical Doctor (MD) to register a patient.

Buy Weed Online Canada

The popular search term for medical marijuana online dispensaries “Buy Weed Online Canada” is very competitive and is set to get fiercely competitive when legal recreational cannabis in Canada becomes legal. Variations of that search term will include provincial locations, for example, “Buy Weed Online Ontario”

You see, each province and territory is responsible for regulating their legal retail cannabis sales. Most provinces and territories will have their own government-run online cannabis store, with no private online retail stores allowed except for Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

These new provincial and private online cannabis stores will be emerging post-October 17, 2018. They will want to be visible online and rank high in the existing competitive online marketplace – which is more or less “Buy Weed Online”, after all, business is business right, and each province and territory will want to compete for their piece of cannabis pie.

Which raises some questions about the online medical marijuana dispensary grey market.

What is going to happen to the online medical marijuana dispensary grey market once recreational cannabis in Canada is legalized? 

Will those grey market online dispensaries be snuffed out to free up space for government-run legal online cannabis stores?

Will the grey market online dispensaries be forced to comply with ACMPR federal program?

The answers to these questions are currently unknown but sooner than later they will reveal themselves and the future of online weed sales in Canada will start to take shape.

Another big looming question is:

Where will I be able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada online, do I have to buy legal weed online from the province where I live?

Each province and territory will have its own online store to sell recreational cannabis for delivery. You will be able to buy weed online in Canada legally through government-run provincial online cannabis stores, except for Saskatchewan and Manitoba where private online cannabis stores are permitted.

To answer the question – do I have to buy legal weed online from the province where I live?
Based on what I managed to dig up online and I quote “most provinces haven’t explicitly said whether they’ll allow online stores from other provinces to sell into their jurisdictions, probably because most provinces are still figuring out exactly how their online sales will work.”

Ontario has said that they plan to prohibit legal recreational retailers in other provinces and territories from selling cannabis in Ontario.  The Leaf Cannabis News effectively sums it up:

From the perspective of Ontario’s government weed dealer, it makes sense to prevent outside cannabis retailers from selling into Ontario. The OCRC will use its government muscle to control 100 percent of legal online cannabis sales in Ontario — why would they allow any competition that would siphon profits away from the provincial government?

The way I see it, that same logic will likely apply to the other provinces and territories with government-owned online cannabis retailers.

I would love to hear your opinions around these questions, let’s get the discussion going, please use the comments section at the bottom of this post.

Cheers,

The Chronic Beaver