How Much is a Half Ounce of Weed? The Complete Weed Price Breakdown
- 1. How many grams are in a half ounce?
- 2. What slang terms are used for half-ounce?
- 3. What does a half ounce of weed look like?
- 4. How much does half ounce weed cost in the uk?
- 4. a. Buds
- 4. b. Hash
- 4. c. Concentrates
- 4. d. Edibles
- 5. Half ounce weed costs in the uk
- 5. a. Price for a half in london
- 5. b. Price for a half in other cities
- 6. Factors that affect weed price
- 6. a. Legality
- 6. b. Quality
- 6. c. Competition
- 6. d. Time of year
- 6. e. Recreational vs medical
- 7. Where you buy half ounce weed
- 8. Weed laws in the uk
- 8. a. Recreational use
- 8. b. Medicinal use
- 9. Faq
- 9. a. How many grams are in a half oz of weed?
- 9. b. What strains are commonly found in the uk?
- 9. c. How much does a half-ounce weigh on a scale?
- 10. The wrap-up
Once you’ve found a reliable and honest “guy”, you stop worrying about the cost of weed and its quality because it’s all dope. It’s even better for those lucky few who live in a “legal” country or state and get their stuff from a dispensary. For the rest of us, it’s very important to know that we’re paying our top buck for something that’s worth every penny. So, how much exactly should an ounce of weed cost?
A half-ounce of weed, which is 14g in metric units can cost considerably less than if you buy your cannabis in one-gram batches. The price for a gram of buds hovers around £5 ($6.5), but buying 14g at a time gives you a “bulk” discount. Of course, a lot depends on where you purchase your weed, its quality, and the season, and there are many other forms of cannabis besides dry flowers. Read on to learn more.
1. How Many Grams Are in a Half Ounce?
An ounce is 28.35 grams, but for practical purposes, this number is rounded to 28g. This makes a half-ounce exactly 14 grams. We have encountered many instances on the web where the dry herb is sold in 14-gram packages.
2. What Slang Terms are Used for Half-Ounce?
There are many slang terms for a half-ounce of weed. Some of them are quite obvious — half O or half zip. Others not so much.
People get very creative with things like this because they want to keep in the dark someone who might be eavesdropping. What’s important is to still understand each other. So, if you hear something like “a half lid”, make sure to ask how big the lid in question is and how many grams of marijuana it contains. Hint: a half-lid is another slang word for half an ounce.
3. What Does a Half Ounce of Weed Look Like?
It’s about as much as you can hold in two handfuls. But of course, a lot depends on the density of buds (and the size of your hands). Since a half-ounce is equal to 14 grams and each gram is enough for at least two regular-sized joints, you can roll no less than 28-30 jays from a half-ounce, depending on how tightly you pack them.
4. How Much Does Half Ounce Weed Cost in the UK?
It would be a tedious task to find out prices for all cannabis products imaginable (because they are so many). Luckily, there are drug marketplaces on the dark web that are easy to scan for prices. Please note that prices can be as much as 50% lower if you buy your weed from a local dealer.
Buds
Buds, aka dry herb or flowers, are the most widely available form of weed, and the prices can range from $99 (£76) to $160 (£122) for a half-ounce. The most common price we saw was $133 (£102). Of course, buds are sold online in bigger batches as well (if you want a lower per-gram price).
Hash
Online merchants seldom sell hash in 14-gram batches because hash is a concentrated form of cannabis and even an eighth can go a long way. The only half-zip offer we could find was a soft-press dry sift for $158 (£121). We think it’s a bargain.
Concentrates
Cannabis concentrates, such as rosin, butane hash oil, live resin, and many others, are a rather new phenomenon. They first appeared on legal markets because the legal environment spurs inventiveness. However, even the black market now offers some of the concentrates. It’s hard to find those sold in half-an-ounce batches, but here you can get a general idea of the price range:
- Raw distillate, 1g – $18 (£14)
- Rick Simpson oil, 3g – $60 (£46)
- Moonrock, 1g – $60 (£46)
- Budder (Wax), 1g – $68 (£52)
Edibles
It’s hardly informative to speak of edibles in terms of their weight. Rather, it’s all about how much THC was infused into a product. Dark web marketplaces feature some illegally imported American snacks—with names like Stoneo (a spoof of Oreo)—but you can also make your own edibles either from dry buds or from cannabutter that can cost something like $50 (£38) for 200g.
5. Half Ounce Weed Costs in the UK
In 2010, an UN Office of Drugs and Crime report listed the prices for marijuana (herb) in the United Kingdom at 2.6–13.2 USD. The typical price was between 4.4 and 5.3 USD. The 2018 Cannabis Price Index gives somewhat different figures (with a breakdown by cities).
Price For a Half in London
As expected, weed cost is the highest in the capital—US$ 9.2—which reflects London’s higher cost of living and a greater amount of wealth among its residents. By multiplying this number by 14 and applying some bulk discount, we estimate the price at about $100–120 (£76–92) for a half-O.
Price For a Half in Other Cities
For obvious reasons, weed costs less in UK’s other cities but not by much. Please find below the price for one gram. From that, you can easily calculate the cost of half an ounce.
- Glasgow – $8.65
- Birmingham – $8.58
- Edinburgh – $8.51
- Liverpool – $7.94
- Manchester – $7.88
- Leeds – $7.67
6. Factors That Affect Weed Price
Obviously, your location is not the only factor that affects the cost of weed. Others may play an equally important role. Let’s briefly review them.
Legality
According to a 2018 estimate by the UN, the price of weed in the UK would be cut in half if the substance were legalized. Interestingly, the level of taxation—between zero and thirty percent in different models—would hardly have any effect, the estimate says.
On the other hand, both pro- and anti-cannabis activists point to the fact that the legalization in many US states has so far failed to put an end to the black market. Strict regulations, a prohibitive licensing process, and high taxes make legal weed more expensive than anything you may buy from your “guy”. It’s not that legalization increases prices — it does the opposite. But street dealers can sell their weed even cheaper and still stay profitable.
Quality
The first thing that may come to mind is the difference between some ditch weed and cutting-edge cannabis genetics. But it’s rarely the case. With the best cannabis seeds and clones so widely available, most commercial growers use only premium varieties. Reports show that even in traditional cannabis-cultivating countries like Morocco, farmers prefer to grow imported American strains instead of local cultivars.
The real difference in quality usually lies in the skills and expertise with which a particular batch was grown. Some things, like the color and density of buds and how closely trimmed they are or how they smell, are obvious and calculated into the price. But there are other invisible (and nasty) things, such as mold spores, tiny insects, dirt, and built-up chemicals, but you won’t know about them until you start to smoke your purchase.
The quality of weed also depends on the way it was stored and transported. Some dealers hard-press their buds to make the package less bulky, with “brick weed” an extreme example. Obviously, such marijuana sells cheaper.
There are also less expensive shake and popcorns as opposed to large whole nuggets. And of course, organic marijuana should be (and is) more costly.
Competition
You’ll notice the effects of low competition on weed prices in small towns where hardly anyone deals. The cost of marijuana will be significantly higher than in big cities.
Time of Year
The popularity of indoor growing has somewhat leveled out the fluctuations in marijuana prices throughout the year. However, the cost of weed still decreases right after the harvest season in autumn. Around this time, you may also come across some cheap finger hash that trimmers scrape off from their hands and scissors and keep for themselves or sell.
The advent of autoflower cannabis means that there are fresh outdoor-grown buds available in summer or even throughout the year in warmer climates.
Recreational vs Medical
In the UK, patients pay exorbitant prices for their medicine, and many prefer to buy it illegally because weed is weed and it’s much cheaper on the black market. In Canada and the US, the situation is exactly reversed: you pay less at a medical dispensary than in a recreational store. But street weed is still less expensive.
7. Where You Buy Half Ounce Weed
You can buy a half-ounce of weed either online or from a local dealer. Those who live in a country or state that has repealed the cannabis prohibition may buy their half-zip in an adult-use marijuana store or dispensary. For them, there’s often also an option of home delivery or curbside pickup.
While it remains illegal to use recreational weed in the United Kingdom, there are some surefire ways of finding it pretty easily - as long as you are in a city or large town. If you are in a less populated area, it may be a little trickier to find. So, where are the best places to scope out if you are looking for a deal? Well, that really depends on where you are.
Small Towns
It's usually not as easy to find weed in small towns as it is in large cities like London, Liverpool, Edinburgh, etc., but like with most things in the UK, you should probably start at the local pub. It's fair to say that pubs are the social heartbeat of any small English town, and so there is a good chance that there will be a resident dealer or at least a few friendly stoners to point you in the right direction.
If there is a specialty bong shop or hydroponics supplier in the area then they also may have the low down, but be careful walking straight in and asking. Your best bet is to head in, browse the products for a while, get chatting with whoever is working in there, and then choose your moment. Depending on how friendly and open the store worker is, you may be able to drop the question on that first visit, but you might also be better off waiting until your second or third visit. Build some trust and rapport up first.
Larger Cities
There is no one straight answer to this one, but in every large city in the UK (and throughout most western countries) you will find weed being sold. Take London, for example. Everyone knows the Camden Markets, yeah? Well, let's just say that if you wander around and find some rasta-looking fellas selling hand drums, then you may be on the right track.
The same goes for large cities as small towns. There's a good chance that most pubs will contain someone who knows where to score some decent bud, be it the bouncer, barman, punter, lonely wine sipper, or whoever else. Just remember to be smart about asking - weed is still illegal in the UK. Do you want to come off as a brash, annoying tourist? Yeah, didn't think so. UK residents are, for the most part, super friendly people. Follow those unspoken rules that potheads worldwide observe and you should have no problems finding that sticky-icky.
8. Weed Laws in the UK
Despite widespread use and a growing public acceptance, cannabis remains a largely illegal and heavily regulated substance in the UK. However, both domestic and international pressure may lead to some reform in the not too distant future.
Recreational Use
The 1971 Dangerous Drug Act lists cannabis as a Class B substance. It’s the second most restrictive category that also includes synthetic cannabinoids, amphetamines, barbiturates, and some other drugs. Possession, production, and supply of Class B substances for recreational use are prohibited. You may go to prison for up to 5 years for possession and up to 14 years for production or supply.
The government made an attempt to decriminalize cannabis by moving it into Class C in 2001. But despite the apparent success of this experiment, the drug was moved back to Class B in 2007.
Medicinal Use
The use of cannabis-based products for therapeutic purposes was legalized in the UK in 2018. The rationale for this decision was that it’s a gross injustice to deny medicine to patients who may benefit from it.
However, the scope of the medical marijuana program in the UK is very limited. Only a small number of medical specialists may prescribe cannabis and only after every other treatment has failed. You also have to jump through a lot of hoops to get reimbursement for your treatment, and there are constant shortages because the country only uses imported weed.
9. FAQ
How many grams are in a half oz of weed?
A half oz of weed is 14 grams. It’s a rather large amount — enough to roll about 30 sizable joints. A regular smoker may go through a half oz in a month. For a heavy smoker, it may be enough for only a week or less.
What strains are commonly found in the UK?
If you asked this a few short years ago, the answer would have been Cheese. And Skunk. And maybe some Chemdawg, or AK, or White Widow. But mostly Cheese and Skunk variations. Not the case any longer though! Californian genetics are everywhere these days, and once you live in an area for while you will eventually get a number for a dealer with a huge range on offer. This is as true in most small towns as it is in big cities. Sure the range might be a little more extensive in the big cities, but it is pretty impressive where the market is at now.
In recent months we have seen a bunch of cool strains on offer. Stuff like White Runtz, G13, Mendocino Skunk, Marshmallow OG, Gorilla Zkittlez, and Wedding Glue to name a few. And we haven't even spoken about hash. The hash market in the UK is booming, with a bunch of options to choose from.
How much does a half-ounce weigh on a scale?
A half-ounce, also referred to as a half oz, half O, or half-zip, weighs 14 grams because an ounce is exactly 28.25 grams and is usually rounded to 28g. A half-ounce is a heap of buds that’ll fit in your cupped hands.
10. The Wrap-Up
So, there we go. Pretty much everything you need to know about scoring a half-ounce of cheeba in the UK. As social acceptance of the plant grows, so does access to more strains and options. Finding weed in the UK is easy, but it remains illegal so always practice discretion when asking around. Stay safe, stay stoned, and stay golden you lovely people!
External References
- Marijuana (herb). Retail and wholesale prices and purity levels, by drug, region and country or territory, UN Office on Drugs & Crime, 2010
- Projected price of legalized cannabis, per gram, in the United Kingdom in 2018, by duty rate, Based on the estimated street price in the United Nation's World Drug Report, June 2018
