Who uses cannabis in Minnesota?

About one in four Minnesota adults (23%) reported consuming cannabis in the past month, with the sharpest divides appearing by income, politics, and place of birth, according to a Minnesota Community Survey of 1,172 adults conducted Sept. 25 to Nov. 6, 2025.

Our survey was conducted weeks after Minnesota's first state-licensed dispensaries opened in September 2025.

Cannabis isn’t just for young people. Our survey found that working-age Minnesotans report similar usage rates across age groups. Partisan identity and, in particular, income reveal far wider gaps.

Related: Most Minnesotans support legal cannabis, but few say it has made things better

The breakdown

Age differences are modest until retirement age. About 1 in 4 adult Minnesotans younger than 65 say they have used some form of THC in the past month, including those in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s. Usage is lower among retirement-aged Minnesotans, with 1 in 6 using cannabis or hemp-derived THC in the past month.

Asian Minnesotans report lower use. Only 6% of Asian adults report recent cannabis use, lower than among Black (30%), White (23%) and Latino (22%) adults.

Foreign-born residents report markedly lower use. U.S.-born Minnesotans are roughly twice as likely as immigrants to report recent cannabis consumption.

Geographic variation is minimal. Minneapolis-St. Paul (24%) and Greater Minnesota (24%) show identical rates, with suburbs slightly lower (20%).

What this tells us

Our finding that working-age Minnesotans over 30 use cannabis at rates similar to young adults reflects an acceleration of national trends. Nationally, the gap between young adults and middle-aged adults narrowed from 2013 to 2022, but young adults still had the highest use rates.

Income patterns stands out. Lower-income Minnesotans report both higher usage rates and more positive views of legalization's effects. Whether this reflects greater personal benefit from legal access, different social contexts, or other factors merits further exploration.

The immigrant divide is consistent. Lower usage among foreign-born residents (12%) matches their lower support for legalization and greater uncertainty over the effects of legalization, pointing to real differences in how immigrants view cannabis.