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How much weed can you legally buy in Missouri? The limit is higher than most states

Adults from across the region are flocking to Missouri dispensaries to buy legal recreational marijuana since sales started on Friday.

Some local dispensaries, like Fresh Green in Kansas City’s Waldo neighborhood, have noticed some customers buying weed in bulk.

On Friday, at least two people visiting Fresh Green purchased their legal limit immediately. Bianca Sullivan, a co-owner of the dispensary, said many customers like to stock up so they don’t have to come back.

“They just don’t wanna come back. They’re like, ‘I’m just gonna buy this and see how long it lasts,’” Sullivan said.

Luckily for those customers, Missouri’s new recreational marijuana law allows for customers to buy up to 3 ounces of marijuana flower, or the equivalent in other products, at a time.

That’s one of the highest legal limits for recreational marijuana consumers in the country.

For comparison, the legal limit for recreational buyers in California and Illinois is 1 ounce, and in Michigan, the most a recreational customer can buy is 2.5 grams.

So what does 3 ounces look like?

In Missouri, any customer 21 years old and up with a valid ID can purchase up to 3 ounces of marijuana flower at a time.

For context, many dispensaries sell marijuana flowers in 3.5 gram packages at about $35 to $50 per package.

Three ounces of marijuana is illustrated by 24 jars containing 3.5 grams of flower at Fresh Green Dispensary on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.
Three ounces of marijuana is illustrated by 24 jars containing 3.5 grams of flower at Fresh Green Dispensary on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.

The 3 ounce limit is the equivalent of 24 or so of those individual packages of flower, or about 22 packs of gummies.

Twenty-two packs of marijuana edibles, representing the maximum amount of marijuana a person can legally possess in the state of Missouri, sit on display at Fresh Green Dispensary on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.
Twenty-two packs of marijuana edibles, representing the maximum amount of marijuana a person can legally possess in the state of Missouri, sit on display at Fresh Green Dispensary on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.

Prices will vary at each dispensary, but 3 ounces of marijuana flower could cost recreational customers upwards of $1,200 after taxes, according to Sullivan.

How much marijuana can I buy a day?

Again, recreational users will only be able to purchase up to 3 ounces at a time. People with medical medical marijuana cards can purchase up to 6 ounces of marijuana within a 30-day period.

Each dispensary will track its own transactions and will not be able to sell a customer more than 3 ounces a day to a recreational client, or 6 ounces a month to a medical patient, unless their doctor prescribes otherwise.

Lily Johnson, a budtender at Fresh Green Dispensary, helps a customer select products on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.
Lily Johnson, a budtender at Fresh Green Dispensary, helps a customer select products on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Kansas City.

How much marijuana am I allowed to have on me?

Once you leave the dispensary, you are still only allowed to have up to 3 ounces of marijuana flower or its equivalent at a time.

“So if you get pulled over by the police you can’t have more than 3 ounces,” said Lee Hoffman, owner of Local Cannabis Company on 45th Street and Belleview Avenue in Kansas City.

How much weed can I have at home?

Still, 3 ounces.

Recreational consumers are allowed to possess up to 3 ounces of marijuana flower or an equivalent, in any setting.

A consumer may purchase up to 3 ounces in a single transaction and be lawfully in possession of up to 3 ounces of dried, processed marijuana or its equivalent. People who choose to grow their own weed instead of picking it up at a dispensary will also be allowed up to 3 ounces of harvested marijuana in an enclosed, locked facility.

In order to grow weed at home, folks will need a special cultivation card and will be able to have up to 18 plants growing at a time. Those 18 plants includes six flowering plants, six non-flowering plants that can be up to 14 inches tall and six clone plants that are smaller than 14 inches tall.