California marijuana sales decline as consumers buy less expensive products

California marijuana consumers aren’t buying less product at state-licensed stores, but they do appear to be buying cheaper ones.That’s one takeaway from state data released this week that showed a significant decrease in quarterly sales revenue even as track-and-trace data showed more unique units sold.

ADVERTISEMENT According to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, legal marijuana stores reported $1.08 billion in sales from Jan.1 through the end of March.

That’s the lowest total for the first quarter of the calendar year since 2020 and a significant year-over-year decrease from the $1.2 billion reported over the same period in 2024.However, according to Metrc’s track-and-trace data provided to MJBizDaily by the state Department of Cannabis Control (DCC), retailers sold 57.4 million “units” in the first quarter of 2025.

That’s a 0.92% increase from the 56.9 million distinct items sold in 2024.Some observers interpreted the data as a sign of yet more trouble ahead for the legal marijuana industry, an outlook further tainted by a looming increase in the excise tax scheduled for July 1.

But for others, there’s more nuance: the role marijuana plays in the broader retail economy, which has suffered across the board amid inflation and worries over trade wars and unstable investments.Marijuana sales not immune to consumer confidence For one, the data has significant limitations; it’s impossible to track profit margins.

And without a more granular dive into state track-and-trace data – which California law protects from public disclosure – it’s impossible to say with certainty that consumers are ditching $300 ounces en masse for $5  pre-rolls.Overall, the data supports the idea that cannabis – long popularly considered recession-proof, as well as a vital medicine that some medical marijuana patients will seek out regardless of macroeconomics – is subject to the sam...