Is marijuana legal in Minnesota?
Yes. As of 2026, marijuana (weed) is legal in Minnesota for adults 21 and older. Statewide licensed adult-use sales began September 16, 2025, and medical cannabis remains legal.
Status checked November 4, 2026
Contents
Marijuana laws in Minnesota
Minnesota legalized adult-use cannabis when Governor Walz signed House File 100 on May 30, 2023. Personal possession and home cultivation for adults 21 and older took effect August 1, 2023. Statewide sales at state-licensed businesses began September 16, 2025, after tribal retailers had already been selling on tribal land. Medical cannabis has been legal since 2014. The Office of Cannabis Management regulates the market.
Adults 21 and older may possess or transport up to 2 ounces of adult-use cannabis flower in a public place, and up to 2 pounds in a private residence. They may also possess or transport up to 8 grams of concentrate and edible products with a combined total of 800 milligrams of THC or less. They may grow up to 8 plants at a single primary residence, with no more than 4 mature and flowering, in an enclosed, locked space that is not open to public view.
Licensed retailers and some medical combination businesses sell to adults 21 and older. Lower-potency hemp edibles are separately regulated.
You may not use cannabis in a motor vehicle, or smoke or vape it where tobacco smoking is banned. Employers may not fire most workers solely for off-duty use, but they can still act on workplace use or impairment. Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, apart from state-licensed medical marijuana, which moved to Schedule III in April 2026.
Minnesota State Capitol, Saint Paul Photo: Adobe Stock (editorial use only).
What the law says
Legal
- possess or transport two ounces or less of adult-use cannabis flower in a public place
- possess two pounds or less of adult-use cannabis flower in the individual's private residence
- possess or transport eight grams or less of adult-use cannabis concentrate
- possess or transport edible cannabis products or lower-potency hemp edibles infused with a combined total of 800 milligrams or less of tetrahydrocannabinol
- Up to eight cannabis plants, with no more than four being mature, flowering plants may be grown at a single residence
Not legal
- use cannabis flower, cannabis products, lower-potency hemp edibles, or hemp-derived consumer products in a motor vehicle
- use cannabis flower, cannabis products, or hemp-derived consumer products in a manner that involves the inhalation of smoke, aerosol, or vapor at any location where smoking is prohibited under section 144.414
- use, possess, or transport cannabis flower, cannabis products, lower-potency hemp edibles, or hemp-derived consumer products if the individual is under 21 years of age
Quoted from Minnesota Statutes §342.09.
How old do you have to be to use marijuana in Minnesota?
You have to be 21 to buy weed in Minnesota for adult use. An individual under 21 may not use, possess or transport adult-use cannabis flower, cannabis products, lower-potency hemp edibles or hemp-derived consumer products. Licensed retailers sell only to adults 21 and older who show a valid ID. Medical cannabis remains available to registered patients, including some younger patients with a caregiver, through the medical program.
How much marijuana can you have in Minnesota?
In public in Minnesota, adults 21 and older can have up to 2 ounces of adult-use cannabis flower, 8 grams of concentrate, and edibles or lower-potency hemp edibles with a combined total of 800 milligrams of THC or less. At home, you can have up to 2 pounds of flower. Those same public limits apply when you carry cannabis, including in a car; using it in a motor vehicle is separately banned. You can give another adult, without payment, up to 2 ounces of flower, 8 grams of concentrate, or 800 milligrams of edible THC.
Where can you buy marijuana in Minnesota?
You can buy weed in Minnesota at state-licensed cannabis businesses and at some medical cannabis combination businesses. Statewide adult-use sales at state-licensed retailers began September 16, 2025. Tribal-regulated dispensaries began selling earlier, in 2023, on tribal land. Adults 21 and older need a valid ID. Lower-potency hemp edibles are sold separately under hemp rules. Buying from an unlicensed seller is not legal.
Can you grow marijuana at home in Minnesota?
Yes. Adults 21 and older in Minnesota can grow up to 8 cannabis plants at a single primary residence, with no more than 4 of them mature and flowering. The grow must be in an enclosed, locked space that is not open to public view. A registered designated caregiver may grow plants for one patient household as well as for personal adult use, with a higher combined cap set in section 342.09. You may not extract concentrate at home with a volatile solvent.
Where can you use marijuana in Minnesota?
You can smoke weed in Minnesota at a private residence, including the yard, and on private property that is not generally open to the public unless the owner says no. You can also use it at a licensed on-site consumption establishment or event. You cannot use cannabis in a motor vehicle, or smoke or vape it anywhere tobacco smoking is banned, including many indoor public places. Use at public schools and charter schools is also banned.
How do you get a medical marijuana card in Minnesota?
To get a medical marijuana card in Minnesota, you register with the Office of Cannabis Management's medical program after a health care practitioner certifies a qualifying condition. Registered patients can buy medical cannabis at licensed medical businesses, and some of those sites also sell adult-use products. Patients younger than 21 use the medical program rather than adult-use sales. Caregivers can be registered to help a patient obtain and, in some cases, grow cannabis.
Can visitors buy or use marijuana in Minnesota?
Yes. Out-of-state visitors can buy marijuana in Minnesota if they are 21 or older. Section 342.09 has no residency requirement for adult-use possession or purchase. Visitors follow the same public and home possession limits as residents and cannot use cannabis in a car or smoke it where tobacco smoking is banned. Taking cannabis out of Minnesota across state lines remains illegal under federal law.
What are the rules on driving and marijuana in Minnesota?
No, you can't drive high in Minnesota. State law says you may not use cannabis flower, cannabis products, lower-potency hemp edibles or hemp-derived consumer products in a motor vehicle. Minnesota's impaired-driving laws also apply to driving under the influence of cannabis. Possessing a legal amount in the car is not a defense to using it there or to driving while impaired.
Can an employer in Minnesota fire you for using marijuana?
In most jobs, you can't be fired in Minnesota just for using cannabis off the clock and off the employer's property. Section 181.938 treats cannabis flower and products as lawful consumable products and bars most employers from refusing to hire, or disciplining or firing someone, solely for that off-duty use. Employers can still act if you use, possess or are impaired at work, on work property or in an employer vehicle, if federal rules require it, or if a bona fide occupational requirement applies.
What are the penalties for breaking marijuana laws in Minnesota?
In Minnesota, adults 21 and older who stay within the public and home possession limits and the eight-plant grow rules are engaging in lawful personal adult use. Using cannabis in a car, smoking it where tobacco smoking is banned, or possessing it under 21 is prohibited. Selling cannabis flower or products without a license is illegal. Growing more than eight plants, or more than four mature plants, without a cultivation license can bring enforcement under chapter 342.
Are CBD, hemp and delta-8 products legal in Minnesota?
Yes, in part. Minnesota separately regulates lower-potency hemp edibles and hemp-derived consumer products. Adults 21 and older may possess edible cannabis products or lower-potency hemp edibles with a combined total of 800 milligrams of THC or less. Delta-8 and similar intoxicating hemp cannabinoids that fall outside those hemp categories are treated as cannabis and belong in the licensed market. THCA flower that is cannabis under state law is not a hemp loophole. Separately, a stricter federal hemp definition, with a total-THC standard that counts THCA and a 0.4 mg-per-container cap, takes effect December 11, 2026.
Does federal law still apply in Minnesota?
Yes. Federal law still applies in Minnesota. Marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law, with one exception: since April 28, 2026, marijuana covered by a state medical marijuana license and FDA-approved marijuana products are in Schedule III. A broader federal rescheduling proceeding was stayed on September 29, 2026, and has no decision date. State law does not change federal rules on federal land, on carrying marijuana across state lines, or on federally required drug testing, such as for DOT-regulated jobs.
Has the law in Minnesota changed recently, or is it about to?
Yes. The biggest recent change for buyers is that statewide adult-use sales at state-licensed businesses began September 16, 2025, after personal possession had already been legal since August 1, 2023. Section 342.09's published text also lists a 2026 amendment (2026 c 123 s 11). New federal hemp limits take effect November 12 and December 11, 2026.
Legislation
Sources (8)
- Minnesota Statutes §342.09, Personal adult use of cannabis revisor.mn.gov
- Minnesota Statutes §181.938, Nonwork activities; prohibited employer conduct revisor.mn.gov
- Minnesota Statutes §342.46 (on-site consumption) revisor.mn.gov
- content.govdelivery.com
- mn.gov
- dea.gov
- federalregister.gov
- congress.gov
General information, not legal advice. Laws change often, so check with the state's cannabis agency before relying on this.
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