Smoking marijuana is now nearly as common among the American population as smoking cigarettes. That is the conclusion of a new Gallup survey, which found that 49% of Americans now admit to using marijuana. This is the highest proportion ever recorded by the organization in more than 50 years of surveying the population about cannabis.
“More than 50 years ago, just 4% said they had tried the drug,” Gallup reports. The percentage increased to 30% between 1970 and 1985, then it remained in the 30s until 2015. After stagnating for 30 years, the percentage of adults who tried marijuana quickly increased to nearly 50% in the last 6 years.
It is unclear whether the percentage of marijuana users actually did increase or if the changing tides simply made existing users more comfortable with admitting their behavior. It is also unclear how many marijuana users still lie about it nowadays because of the stigma associated with the plant.
While lifetime use of cannabis seems to increase, reported regular use of marijuana is consistent, remaining between 11% and 13% every year since Gallup included it on its annual survey. In 2021, 12% of Americans admitted to using marijuana with regularity, including 20% of Millennials.
The Cannabis Generational Gap
The study found a generational gap between older Americans, whom Gallup calls “traditionalists,” 195 of whom tried marijuana at least once. In the rest of the population, roughly half consumed marijuana. Baby Boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964) seem essentially unaffected by the legalization of cannabis in many states, as they show the same rates of use now as they did in the 1980s and 1990s, while Gen Xers (born between 1965 and 1990) have increased their marijuana consumption in the past few years. Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) are the most cannabis-friendly generation, with a rate of use of 51%.
One conclusion of Gallup’s study is that generations seem unwilling to change their mind about cannabis. The percentage of traditionalists who tried marijuana doubled since 1985, but Gallup explains that it “probably reflects the dying off of many of the oldest members of that generation, who were much less likely than younger traditionalists to have tried marijuana.” Otherwise, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers saw little to no increase in marijuana use despite the plant being much more ubiquitous and legal, now.
“With little change in generational rates of marijuana experimentation over time, the increase in the proportion of U.S. adults who have tried marijuana mainly reflects Millennials replacing older traditionalists in the U.S. adult population,” the study says.
Other differences have been noted, such as a gender gap. Men are nearly twice as likely as women to smoke marijuana habitually. Only 3% of Americans who attend religious services weekly consume pot regularly, while 19% of people who don’t attend church do. Democrats and non-affiliated progressives consume pot at up to four times the rate of Republicans, as can be expected.
“The percentage of Americans who have tried marijuana has steadily climbed in recent decades,” Gallup concludes. “It may not get much higher than 50% given the rates of experimentation have been steady around 50% in Gen Xers and among Baby Boomers. Half of Millennials have also tried marijuana, and with many in that group approaching middle age, that proportion seems unlikely to increase in future years.” The propensity of newer generations to try marijuana will determine how common pot becomes in future years, as all generations currently alive seem to experiment with pot up to 50% and essentially level off, plateauing as the generation becomes older and less receptive.
However, a key finding by this study is that a large proportion of Americans want to see weed legalized despite never trying it themselves. Gallup’s latest survey on support for the full legalization of marijuana found that at least 68% of the population is in favor of it. In conclusion, it is not necessary to personally use or even have prior experience with marijuana in order to support cannabis reform.
