Shopping for cannabis products can be a daunting experience, and not just for first-timers. Depending on your dispensary of choice, there could be dozens of different brands and hundreds of different products available.
Here’s a few steps to take so the next time you walk into the dispensary, you can find the products you want with confidence.
Different Types of Cannabis Products
Cannabis comes in a few different categories and subcategories, most of which will fall under flower, concentrates, or edibles.
Flower
Most shoppers will be familiar with cannabis flower because it was the main consumption method prior to legalization. However, flower can come in a variety of formats at the dispensary:
- Whole flower you grind up and roll into a joint or put in a pipe to smoke.
- Pre-rolled joints that you can buy and smoke right away without having to roll your own.
- Shake/Trim is the smaller buds (sometimes called popcorn) and loose leaves/stems of the cannabis plant, usually sold at a discounted price and used similarly to whole flower.
Concentrates
While cannabis concentrates have existed in some form for centuries, they really started gaining popularity in the early-mid 2010s as new forms of cannabis concentrates (aka extracts) were introduced. Today this can include:
- Traditional hash in the form of a small brick or puck, which can be broken up and mixed with cannabis flower (or commonly tobacco in Europe).
- Dabs, or a small jar of cannabis extract that can be smoked using a ‘dab rig’ (typically a water pipe or bong) that utilizes a heated ‘nail’ to combust the concentrate to be inhaled. Dabs include shatter, wax, badder, budder, live resin, live rosin and distillate.
- Vape Pens take the aforementioned cannabis concentrates, mainly distillate, live resin and live rosin, and put them into a cartridge that can be attached to a battery. This allows quick, controlled hits with the touch of a button, and cartridges come in a variety of sizes. You can also get all-in-one vape pens where the cartridge comes attached to the battery and cannot be removed.
Edibles
Edibles are quickly becoming one of the more popular ways to consume cannabis because there is no combustion or inhalation required. For the health-conscious consumer, edibles are a great way to get the benefits of cannabis without the health risks associated with smoking or vaping.
Edibles is a very diverse category, but some of the more popular are:
- Gummies are the most popular edible category by far, accounting for over 70% of all edible sales in 2024. In most states with recreational cannabis, gummies (and edibles in general) will come in a pack of 10, 10mg pieces with a total 0f 100mg in the package.
- Caramels, chews and taffies are the second most popular.
- Chocolates are the third most popular category, with most other edible types making up smaller percentages of sales.
What Experience Do You Want?
While all contain THC, different types of cannabis products can provide different effects due to how they are consumed.
For example, smoking, vaping and dabbing will have near-immediate results, with effects being felt typically within seconds. This is due to the smoke/vapor being absorbed through your lungs.
Edibles on the other hand are broken down through your digestive system before entering the blood stream, leading to a delayed effect.
Due to the delayed onset of most edibles, it is not uncommon to think the first dose is not working. This is a key mistake to avoid if you are new to cannabis edibles.
Factors like your last meal and general metabolism can impact how quickly you feel an edible. This means onset times for edibles can vary drastically, from around 30 minutes to over an hour before any effects are felt.
So when deciding which cannabis products you want, it is important to know what experience you are hoping to achieve. If you want a faster “head high” onset that dissipates after an hour or two, flower or concentrates may be the best choice.
For a longer lasting, full-body effect, edibles are the best option. Just remember that some patience may be required.
Cannabis Edibles without the Delay
At The Clear, we noticed the most common complaint regarding cannabis edibles over recent years has been the onset time. This has led to one of the most common edible issues that consumers deal with, which is over-dosing. Not literally overdosing, but taking more than necessary because the initial dose takes too long to take effect.
This commonly leads to an uncomfortable high that last way too long, which can scare consumers away from edibles.
To combat this issue, The Clear launched its EFX line, featuring low-dose cannabis tablets. Using a brand new technology exclusive to The Clear, we have been able to create fast-acting tablets that can be felt in as little as 15 minutes.
Blended with beneficial minor cannabinoids in precise ratios lends itself to a more catered edible experience as well. Whether you are seeking energy, relaxation or just an escape, The Clear EFX line can help you achieve targeted effects without the guess work.
Not only do our EFX tablets hit more quickly, the effects are more consistent and reliable because they are absorbed more quickly in your body. While traditional edibles lose some of their potency in the breakdown process, EFX tablets ensure you get the full dose, every time.
