Today, the average marijuana user looks a lot like the people once stereotyped as not being the types to use marijuana. They’re college-educated young people who make a salary higher than the national average. They’re Moms and other women looking for a new way to relax. And they’re also older Americans who want a safer way to manage pay.

A group of recent reports and surveys is shining a light on how the profile of the average marijuana user has changed. They no longer can fall into the stereotypical category of lazy, out-of-work coach potatoes. Increasingly, they’re part of what people consider the “mainstream” population. You know, what the hips kids used to think of as squares.

New Study Destroys Myths About Average Marijuana User

A new survey of 5,000 marijuana users from cannabis company Dutchie dispensed with many of the myths about cannabis. For example, it found the average cannabis consumer is employed and makes more than $50,000 a year.

“There is no data to support the assertion that cannabis consumers are simply out-of-work stoners,” Beau Whitney, an Oregon cannabis economist, said. Other findings from the study included:

• 54 percent of users have a college degree
• 55 percent are women
• 58 percent described themselves as active, and 77 percent said they are health conscious

Most of those who use cannabis said they did so to feel relaxed and calm. Dutchie CEO Ross Lipson said the survey “debunked the myth of cannabis.” He added: “Cannabis consumers are not lazy or lower economic status. Cannabis consumers can be Olympic athletes, professional athletes and are very educated, very productive people.”

Other Data on the Average Marijuana User

Statistics on the age of the average marijuana user show that those under 30 make up less than a quarter of all cannabis users. The findings show that cannabis use by age group split as follows (52 percent reported not actively using cannabis):

• 22 percent are 18 to 29 years old
• 11 percent are 30 to 49 years old
• 12 percent are 50 to 64 years old
• 3 percent are 65 years old or older

The group over 50 – 15 percent of all users – is one of the fastest growing segments of the marijuana-using population. The average marijuana user group now includes those over 50 who are giving cannabis a chance to manage their pain, help them sleep and control their anxiety.

The average marijuana consumer spends about $645 per year on cannabis, according to Sales Fuel. The median amount spent on each trip to a dispensary is $33.

A recent roundup of cannabis statistics by Flowhub showed that the latest data indicates widespread use of marijuana across the country. They found the following.

• 12 percent of Americans are actively using marijuana.
• Cannabis sales increased 67% across the United States in 2020.
• The highest level of the population ever – 68 percent – support marijuana legalization
• The U.S. cannabis industry is worth $61 billion.

Clearly, the average marijuana user looks increasingly like your neighbor or co-worker. The stereotypical stoner who has dropped out of society (and the job market) has become a thing of the past, if it was ever true, at all.