New York. Big money. You'd normally think Wall Street, ridiculous apartment prices or a cup of coffee that practically requires a bank loan. This time, though, it's weed. Since December 2022, people across New York State have spent more than $4.1 billion on legal cannabis. The first nine months of 2026 alone brought in $1.41 billion in sales. Governor Kathy Hochul announced the figures on October 27.
There are now 744 legal weed shops open for business, even though the state has given the green light to more than a thousand. Turns out getting permission to open a store and actually opening one are two different things. Another figure worth a look: the state says 56 percent of cannabis licenses have gone to applicants from communities that historically had fewer opportunities. Sounds good on paper. Whether it works out that way in real life is another question.
Meanwhile, New York is going after sellers operating outside the legal market. Authorities say they've shut down 738 illegal shops and seized cannabis products worth more than $276 million. So the legal weed business is booming while the state tries to squeeze out the underground trade. Same plant. Very different story depending on which cash register the money ends up in.
