What’s the Ideal Edible Dose for a Daily Smoker?

The right edible dosage for a daily smoker will typically be higher than the THC edible dosage for someone who is new to cannabis, which is why it can be helpful to have some idea of where to start (and finish). 

For most smokers, the ideal THC content for cannabis edibles is between 10 mg and 100 mg. However, the exact figure will depend on several factors, including your metabolism and therapeutic needs.

Edibles Dosage Chart for Daily Smokers: How Many Milligrams Do You Need?

Edibles can provide a pretty intense high—if you're prepared to wait for the effects. But if you regularly smoke joints, blunts, and pre-rolls, you'll need to start with a stronger edible to feel the same level of euphoria as someone who's new to consuming cannabis.

The number of milligrams of THC you'll need to feel psychoactive effects (and not become uncomfortably paranoid) depends on your tolerance as well as your body weight, metabolism, gender, and any other health needs you have. 

However, even if your tolerance is high, the best advice is still to start low and wait at least an hour before having any more. It's better to feel nothing at first than to eat too many edibles and freak yourself out.

10 mg of THC

Ten milligrams is the standard dose of THC in edibles in Seattle and other legal cities around the United States. Typically, you'll buy a pack of 10 edibles with 10 mg THC in each for a total of 100 mg of THC.

For a daily smoker, 10 mg is a good place to start. You will probably feel euphoric and experience a certain level of altered perception as well as mildly impaired coordination. This could also be a good dose for mild relief.

20 mg of THC

20 mg of THC provides a more intense experience than 10 mg—you'll probably feel strong euphoria and altered perception and coordination. This is most likely the ideal dose for consumers with high tolerances or slow gastrointestinal absorption.

If you don’t smoke every day, 20 mg of THC could lead to some serious discomfort (paranoia, anxiety, racing heart, and the like). So even if you end up taking 20 mg per day, it’s best to start with 10 mg the first time you try.

50-100 mg of THC

If you need stronger relief than 10 mg or 20 mg can provide, you may need to consider high doses of THC. 50 mg of THC and above is a very highdose and should only be attempted by people who smoke daily and/or dab near-pure THC concentrates. Medical patients with serious conditions like cancer or inflammatory disorders may also require doses in this range. 

We can’t over-emphasize how powerful this much THC can be! It’s absolutely not for everyone. In addition, please note that 100 mg THC should be seen as an absolute maximum for people with high tolerances, and exceeding this dose could have negative effects. If you need to take 100 mg THC or more every single day to “feel something,” it might be time to take a short break from cannabis to reset your tolerance threshold.

Finding Your Sweet Spot

As stated earlier, the best way to find the right dose is to start with smaller doses and gradually work your way up until you find your “sweet spot” with edibles. For example, you could start with 10 mg and gradually increase the dose by 5 mg or 10 mg each day. 

Some smokers who prefer a microdosing approach might choose to stick with low doses taken every few hours. It really depends on the effects you’re looking for and how high your tolerance threshold is.

How Much THC Is in a Cannabis Edible?

Edibles that you buy from a licensed dispensary are the easiest to dose, simply because they are infused with standard doses up to the legal limit. If you're shopping for cannabis edibles at a dispensary, look for evidence of lab testing and check whether the dose is "per piece" or the total for the packet. While most manufacturers run with standard doses, some give the total THC for the packet, which needs to be divided by the number of pieces to find the THC content per piece.

Homemade edibles are the hardest to dose because the amount of THC in the original cannabis material may be unknown or the THC may be spread unevenly throughout the batch. Ideally, you would bake your own cannabutter using one ounce of lab-tested weed and calculate how much THC is in the cannabutter stick. Then, divide the block into four equally-sized cubes to make it easier to calculate how much THC is in the edibles you make.

Tips for Consuming Cannabis Edibles

Don't Eat Edibles on an Empty Stomach

Eating edibles on an empty stomach is a bad idea. Cannabinoids are absorbed best with fats, so you'll actually have a better edible high if you have edibles after a fatty meal like potato chips or a breakfast burrito. Having an edible on an empty stomach, while it may slightly speed up the onset of THC, is more likely to lead to negative and unpredictable effects.

Be Patient

It can take as little as 30-45 minutes or as long as 90 minutes to feel psychoactive effects from edibles, and the edible high typically peaks at around two to three hours. However, if you've eaten beforehand, the high can last for as long as 12 hours. If you’re after instant effects rather than a “day trip,” you're better off opting for marijuana smoke, vapes, dabs, or a sublingual cannabis oil tincture.

How to Come Down if You Have Too Much

Even the most seasoned smoker can overdo it with cannabis edibles and have a cannabis experience that’s less than fun. If you need to sober up from weed, chewing on black pepper may actually be an effective remedy. In fact, the black pepper remedy is so well known that it was even published in a review entitled "Taming THC: Potential Cannabis Synergy and Phytocannabinoid-Terpenoid Entourage Effects" in the British Journal of Pharmacology (August 2011). 

Another way to temper an overly intense high is to take CBD oil or smoke some high-CBD hemp. Like pinene (the terpene found in black pepper), cannabidiol also helps to moderate the effects of THC through the entourage effect. More detailed information on CBD-THC interactions can be found in the review linked above.

Cannabis Edibles Can Make for a Great Experience

If you've been smoking cannabis for years and feel ready for something a little different, trying a THC edible could enhance your cannabis experience. To avoid negative effects, start with the standard dose of 10 mg and work your way up until you find the dose that works for you, and if you overdo it, try some black pepper or CBD. 

There are many factors that influence your ideal THC level, but once you find it, the experience should be well worth the wait.