North Dakota Cannabis
Market Intelligence Report

North Dakota operates one of the smallest medical cannabis markets covered in this report set, with sales reaching $21.6 million in fiscal year 2023 — up 41% from $16.3 million in fiscal year 2021, the most recent officially reported figures identified for this report. The program registered 9,596 qualifying patients as of June 2023. The supply chain is correspondingly compact: just 2 licensed manufacturing/processing facilities and 8 licensed dispensaries serve the entire state, among the tightest license caps of any medical-only program in the country.

North Dakota voters have now rejected adult-use cannabis legalization three consecutive times: in 2018, in 2022, and most recently in November 2024, when Initiated Measure 5 was defeated 52.55% to 47.45% — the closest margin of the three votes, suggesting gradually shifting, though still unfavorable, public sentiment. The 2025 legislative session brought a modest program expansion, adding low-dose THC edibles (capped at 5mg per serving, 50mg per package) to the list of products available at medical dispensaries.

North Dakota's population of fewer than 785,000 — the smallest of any state in this report set — supports a medical cannabis program of correspondingly modest scale, with above-median household income. (Official, Census ACS 2024)

North Dakota's medical cannabis program is regulated by the Division of Medical Marijuana within the Department of Health and Human Services. License counts are fixed by statute at just 2 manufacturing/processing facilities and 8 dispensaries statewide — among the smallest license footprints of any medical-only program in the country. The 2025 legislative session added low-dose THC edibles to the approved product list, a modest regulatory expansion.

North Dakota does not operate a dedicated tax-incentive or grant program for cannabis businesses; the fixed 2-processor/8-dispensary cap structure itself functions as the primary market-shaping policy lever.

North Dakota's cannabis supply chain is among the most concentrated of any state in this report set: just 2 licensed manufacturing/processing facilities supply all 8 licensed dispensaries statewide. The 2025 legislative session's addition of low-dose THC edibles to the approved product list represents the program's most notable recent supply-side development, expanding the product range available within the existing licensed structure rather than adding new license capacity.

North Dakota's patient base and sales both grew through FY2023, the most recent period with officially reported figures identified for this report; more recent 2025-2026 patient and sales totals were not found in publicly available state reporting reviewed for this report. (Not Available — current patient/sales totals.)

North Dakota's 8 dispensaries are distributed across the state's larger population centers, including Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks, and Minot. The Division of Medical Marijuana does not publish a current county-by-county sales breakdown. (Not Available — county-level sales breakdown.)

With license counts fixed by statute at just 2 processors and 8 dispensaries, North Dakota's cost-to-enter dynamics run almost entirely through the secondary market for existing licenses.

Vendor demand signal tracks which product and service categories North Dakota's small, fixed operator base is actively sourcing this quarter.

North Dakota patients pay a 5.0% sales tax on medical cannabis purchases, with no additional state excise tax layered on top — a comparatively simple, low-friction tax structure relative to other medical-only states in this report set. A specific itemized total tax revenue figure for recent fiscal years was not identified in public state reporting reviewed for this report. (Not Available — exact recent-year tax revenue total.)

North Dakota borders two adult-use states and one medical-only neighbor, situating it within a regional landscape where most surrounding states have moved further than North Dakota itself on cannabis policy.

North Dakota does not publish a consolidated statewide cannabis-industry employment figure. With only 2 processing facilities and 8 dispensaries statewide, direct industry employment is almost certainly among the smallest of any state in this report set, though no official total is available. (Not Available.)

North Dakota's medical cannabis program does not include a dedicated statewide social equity license track; the fixed 2-processor/8-dispensary cap structure has limited new-entrant opportunities of any kind since the program's launch. (Official.)

North Dakota does not publish an official illicit cannabis market size estimate. With cannabis remaining illegal for adult, non-patient use statewide, and three consecutive legalization votes failing, an unregulated market for non-patients likely exists alongside the small licensed medical program, though no official dollar figure quantifies this. (Not Available.)

This report blends official North Dakota HHS licensing and sales data, legislative annual reports, certified election results, and federal demographic sources. Where current 2025-2026 sales and patient figures were not publicly available, the most recent officially reported figures are used and labeled with their as-of date.

This report compiles data from the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, the North Dakota Legislative Assembly, certified state election records, federal demographic sources, and reputable cannabis policy media.