Medical versus recreational cannabis in Montana

The two programs

Montana's medical program came first and still operates on its own rules. Adult-use sales opened January 1, 2022 and sit on top of it. The Cannabis and Alcohol Regulation Division of the Department of Revenue administers both.

The same store often serves both. An adult-use dispensary may sell to registered cardholders, to adults 21 and over, or to both, depending on the license it holds. The product on the shelf frequently comes from the same batch either way. What changes is the tax you pay, the amount you may buy, and a few rules around growing at home.

Tax

State law taxes adult-use sales at 20 percent of retail price and cardholder sales at 4 percent. Both figures sit in the same statute.

Cascade County adds a 3 percent local-option excise tax, which voters approved in November 2022 for both medical and adult-use sales. Counties may set a local rate up to 3 percent, and not every county has one.

On a 50 dollar purchase in Great Falls, that difference works out to roughly 11.50 dollars in tax at the adult-use rate against roughly 3.50 dollars at the cardholder rate. Over a year of regular purchases, the gap covers the 20 dollar card fee many times over.

Purchase limits

Adults 21 and over may possess up to 1 ounce of usable marijuana, counting no more than 8 grams of concentrate and no more than 800 milligrams of THC in solid edible products. A dispensary may not complete a sale that would put you over that.

Registered cardholders work against a different ceiling. State law allows a cardholder to buy up to 1 ounce of usable marijuana per day and up to 5 ounces per month. A cardholder may petition the Department of Revenue for a higher monthly limit when a physician confirms the condition warrants it.

The ounce is a shared unit across formats. The Department of Revenue treats 1 ounce of flower as equivalent to 800 milligrams of THC in products or 8 grams of concentrate, so a mixed basket gets converted before it counts against the limit.

Age

Adult-use starts at 21. There is no path around it, and the store checks a valid, unexpired government photo ID at the door.

The medical program starts at 18 for an applicant acting on their own behalf. A minor may hold a card, but only with guardian consent and two physician recommendations, with an exception for certain specialists. A designated purchaser buying on a cardholder's behalf must be at least 21.

Home grow

Adults 21 and over may grow two mature plants and two seedlings at a private residence. Registered cardholders may grow four mature plants and four seedlings. Either way, the plants have to stay in a locked space and out of public view.

Getting a card

A Montana resident applies to the Department of Revenue with a written certification from a Montana-licensed physician or doctor of osteopathic medicine. Registration costs 20 dollars for a new card or a renewal, and a replacement card costs 10 dollars. Cards run up to one year from approval unless the physician specifies a shorter term.

This page describes the program's mechanics. Whether a card fits your situation is a conversation with a physician, not with a dispensary, and nothing here speaks to that.

What does not change between the two

Plenty of Montana cannabis rules apply the same way regardless of which program you buy under.

Public consumption stays prohibited for cardholders and adult-use customers alike, and so does consuming on public transportation. Driving under the influence stays illegal, with the same 5 nanogram per milliliter threshold for delta-9 THC in blood. The transport rules are identical: unopened original packaging, carried in a locked glove compartment, a trunk, a truck bed, or another closed container that a driver or passenger does not normally occupy.

Crossing a state line stays prohibited under federal law in every circumstance, and Montana's own guidance says a card changes nothing there.

Product on the shelf comes from the same licensed supply chain with the same lab testing behind it. The one product-level difference customers notice is the edible serving standard, where the 5 milligram adult-use cap does not bind cardholders the same way.

At the counter

Bring the card if you have one, and say so before the sale rings up. The tax rate applies at the register based on what the store records, and asking afterward means voiding the transaction.

If you hold a card and buy regularly, watch the monthly ceiling rather than the daily one. Five ounces a month is the constraint that catches people, and the store's system tracks it against the state database in real time.

Rates and limits shift with each legislative session. Before you rely on a number in this guide for anything that matters, check it against the Department of Revenue's current cardholder pages or the statute itself.