# Uruguay legalizes cannabis. How does the price compare with other legal/illegal sources? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 8, 2017, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789 "2017-07-08T20:43:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/1 "2017-07-08T20:43:57Z")
[Here’s the story.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/in-uruguays-marijuana-experiment-the-government-is-your-pot-dealer/2017/07/07/6212360c-5a88-11e7-aa69-3964a7d55207_story.html) I recall back in the 60s when we used to talk about a long-distant future when you could buy pot at your local pharmacist some of us would say, “It won’t be good, man, they’ll tax it up the wazoo, cannabis will be so expensive none of us guys will be able to afford it.” The price back then (1968, South Coast of England) was £8 for an ounce of brown Morocco hashish (lovely design, each ounce was stamped with a palm tree). The exchange rate in 1968 was around 2.4 dollars to the pound so an ounce of hash would be around $19.2. In Uruguay today the state-mandated price is $1.30 a gram, I don’t know what the US prices are, legal or illegal. The conversions needed are beyond me at the moment but can anyone tell me if the doomsayers were right back then? Do you get a better deal from the government or from the Man? NB this is all purely academic for me now as I quit smoking dope decades ago. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/2 "2017-07-08T20:56:23Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > In Uruguay today the state-mandated price is $1.30 a gram, I don’t know what the US prices are, legal or illegal. The conversions needed are beyond me at the moment but can anyone tell me if the doomsayers were right back then? Do you get a better deal from the government or from the Man? > > NB this is all purely academic for me now as I quit smoking dope decades ago. In my neighborhood central CA $10/gram is pretty common ($35 per 1/8th oz) , people looking to move volume, or if purchasing in quantity you might see as low as $5-7. Once all new CA licences are finalized you will see about $15-20/oz in additional taxes. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/3 "2017-07-08T21:10:04Z")
$1.30/gram is about 1/10 the price typically found in the states. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/4 "2017-07-08T21:10:37Z")
I found an ounce of hash from a licensed Canadian producer. It sells for $400 (Canadian) that is a little over $310 US. That price does include GST which I believe is 7% in BC where they are based. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/5 "2017-07-08T21:11:52Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > $1.30/gram is about 1/10 the price typically found in the states. Right, and I would be very curious as to the quality you can get for that price - harsh ditch weed springs to mind. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/6 "2017-07-08T21:34:50Z")
In Oregon it’s about $200 an ounce for good medical grade, $6.75/g … Grey market you can find the same stuff for half the price … this is from medicinal growers who sell their excess on the street … the State doesn’t want to throw them in jail because then they’d have to pay for cancer treatment … technically illegal, but not enforced at this time … Black market is all but gone … no more “drug dealers” loitering at the middle schools anymore … A surprising source of government revenue with these commercial operations is that none of the business expenses are tax deductible … we have to report the gross income, but since it’s still illegal under Federal law, we can’t write off the expenses … cute eh? … ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/7 "2017-07-08T21:42:34Z")
> [@watchwolf49](#): > > Grey market you can find the same stuff for half the price … this is from medicinal growers who sell their excess on the street … the State doesn’t want to throw them in jail because then they’d have to pay for cancer treatment … technically illegal, but not enforced at this time … > > Black market is all but gone … no more “drug dealers” loitering at the middle schools anymore … I disagree about the disappearance of the black market. What you describe as the “grey market” is simply the evolution of the black market. Medical growers not only sell to non-licensed people, they sell in bulk to people, both legal card holders and illegal buyers, who then sell what they bought on the black market. And the fact that there is a middle man in the transaction means that prices, at least on the user-level, are the highest of all. I realize I’m talking about states where medical marijuana is legal but not recreational. It’s different if any and everybody can legally buy. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/8 "2017-07-08T23:14:55Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Right, and I would be very curious as to the quality you can get for that price - harsh ditch weed springs to mind. $10/gram is good stuff. you can pay more for the latest “cool” strain of “mango diesel girl scout oreo cookie supreme CBD” In states like CA, OR, WA, NV with the “home grow” provisions its not hard to find a friend with half a pound on hand. In less affluent economies where MJ will grow easily outdoors year round, thats still serious money for them. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/9 "2017-07-08T23:30:27Z")
> [@drachillix](#): > > $10/gram is good stuff. you can pay more for the latest “cool” strain of “mango diesel girl scout oreo cookie supreme CBD” > > In states like CA, OR, WA, NV with the “home grow” provisions its not hard to find a friend with half a pound on hand. > > In less affluent economies where MJ will grow easily outdoors year round, thats still serious money for them. I assumed he was talking about the quality in Uruguay. The quality of whatever it is you’re getting for $1.30/gram ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2017, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/10 "2017-07-08T23:59:44Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > I disagree about the disappearance of the black market. What you describe as the “grey market” is simply the evolution of the black market. Medical growers not only sell to non-licensed people, they sell in bulk to people, both legal card holders and illegal buyers, who then sell what they bought on the black market. And the fact that there is a middle man in the transaction means that prices, at least on the user-level, are the highest of all. > > I realize I’m talking about states where medical marijuana is legal but not recreational. It’s different if any and everybody can legally buy. That may be the case … I can only speak to what I see myself … by “grey market”, what I mean is the when the `dealers` are people who are very sick … like cancer or chronic pain … they just want a couple hundred to go and have a good time in The Big City … and by medical growers I mean people who grow only from their own medication, technically they’re supposed to destroy their excess … We still have five and ten acre operations going on for export to California … people out for tax-free profits … commercial grade, wooooooooo … glad California legalized recreational, those plots are an ecologic disaster … And now recreational is legal … couple of shops on Main St and these are “dedicated” shops, they can only sell marijuana … near as I can tell nothing else … but that’s mostly the same with Oregon’s State-owned liquor stores … they sell liquor and nothing else … and for the same reasons, pot’s to be regulated like liquor … Hey, folks … don’t toke and drive … serious now … ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/11 "2017-07-09T00:33:12Z")
When are California weed shops going to be open? Are they on track to open by the beginning of next year? And are any other countries going to be legalizing dope for recreational purposes? Other than Uruguay and Canada, that is. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/12 "2017-07-09T00:55:30Z")
At quick glance, I misread the title as "Uruguay legalizes cannibals. " Now THAT would be an interesting thread. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/13 "2017-07-09T03:58:14Z")
So liver with fava beans and brownies? ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/14 "2017-07-09T05:46:28Z")
Looked at websites for the local dispensaries. Anywhere from $9 to $16 per gram. Not sure if these are the regular prices or inflated due to rush and shortages. Uruguay is lower income than the US, so lower prices are expected, though it’s one of the richer South American countries. > [@dtilque](#): > > When are California weed shops going to be open? Are they on track to open by the beginning of next year? 1/1/2018 is the probable date. Here, the opening date was iffy until the last minute. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/15 "2017-07-09T12:41:34Z")
Legal weed shops are scheduled to open across Canada in time for July 1, 2018. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/16 "2017-07-09T14:22:06Z")
Note that the Uruguay minimum wage is $1.70 per hour. In the US, it’s federally $7.25/hour, but various cities & states have a higher minimum. (My city just set it at $15/hour, over the next few years.) Another comparison, the McDonalds Big Mac meal is $2.45 in Uruguay. while it around $6-$8 in the US. So the Uruguay price is about 1-1/3 hours of minimum-wage work. Not that much different from the USA price. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/17 "2017-07-09T16:31:36Z")
So the answer seems to be that, in Oregon at least, the grey/black market gives you a far better price than the government, $100 an ounce as opposed to $200 an ounce (I’m assuming the quality is comparable.) Street prices in England back in 1968 ranged from around $19 an ounce (far less if you bought in real bulk) to double that or more if you bought at lowest street level. According to the [American Institute for Economic Research Calculator](https://www.aier.org/cost-living-calculator) $100 in 1968 is the equivalent of $714.71 now so say around 7 times as much. So to sum up, going by inflation I would need $133 to buy an ounce on the street now. As to the actual prices, taking Oregon as example, I would need to spend $100 for an ounce on the street and $200 from the Government. In other words the doom and gloom merchants were wrong to predict disaster if cannabis were legalized. The street might still give the best deal but the government certainly wasn’t making marijuana impossible to afford for the poor. And it’s remarkable how pot prices have more or less kept in line with inflation. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2017, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/18 "2017-07-09T16:54:30Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > So the answer seems to be that, in Oregon at least, the grey/black market gives you a far better price than the government, $100 an ounce as opposed to $200 an ounce (I’m assuming the quality is comparable.) One nitpick: it’s not the state government that’s selling it. They are private businesses. The state regulates the weed business; it doesn’t run it. And I would expect the legal dope to be higher quality in general, although not being a consumer, I can’t say from personal experience. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2017, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/19 "2017-07-10T22:00:29Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > And it’s remarkable how pot prices have more or less kept in line with inflation. Amusingly enough there are a few articles out there saying production costs could go as low as $7/oz with modern farming/production techniques… Making $20-30/oz pot totally feasible. Unlikely, but feasable. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2017, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789/20 "2017-07-10T22:01:27Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > And I would expect the legal dope to be higher quality in general, although not being a consumer, I can’t say from personal experience. It’s all the same shit. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uruguay-legalizes-cannabis-how-does-the-price-compare-with-other-legal-illegal-sources/790789.md?page=2)