A new study from the analysts at Headset shows the growing popularity of vape pens among cannabis users, especially younger generations, particularly Gen Z.
The report, released in March, reveals that vape pens are the second-most popular category in the United States, with a 23.6% market share, with year-over-year growth in most state markets. Flower still dominates at 40.5% with pre-rolls third at 12.3%.
In the U.S. market, Illinois captures the highest market share of vape pens at 27.4% of total 2022 sales, followed by Florida (25.4%) and California (25%). The lowest representation of vape pens are in Oregon (19.2%), followed by Massachusetts (19.8%) and Michigan (20.6%), though the category still captures nearly a fifth of total sales in these states, according to Headset. However, sales of vape pens in Michigan and Massachusetts also saw the largest and second-largest year-over-year growth in the category of all state markets analyzed by Headset.
An analysis of demographics shows that Gen Z consumers have the greatest preference toward vape pens versus other product forms while millennials buy the largest overall percentage.
Together Gen Z and millennials make up 62.8% of all cannabis sales and 70.8% of all vape pen sales, according to the report.
The popularity of the products has led to an increase in vape pen brands, with the brand count growing 12% in 2022 after a 14.9% growth in the category the prior year. The cartridge, however, remains the most popular segment, accounting for 85.4% of sales in the category. Among cartridges, the 1-gram cart is the most popular, accounting for 70.6% of sales.
— Brian Beckley