What’s a gram of weed look like? Our handy photo guide to different amounts of cannabis, including useful information on legal limits proposed by the federal government in Bill C-45 By: Solomon Israel Posted: Last Modified:

If you've been keeping up the news on cannabis legalization in Canada, you've probably heard a lot about weights and measurements.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/01/2018 (3121 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you’ve been keeping up the news on cannabis legalization in Canada, you’ve probably heard a lot about weights and measurements.

For example, the Liberal government’s Cannabis Act would permit an adult to carry up to 30 grams of marijuana in public without fear of arrest.

To the uninitiated, though, “30 grams of marijuana” means little.  Estimating weights in grams at all might be a bit of a stretch, unless you do a lot of baking.

No worries: The Leaf is here for you. We’ve put together this photo guide to different amounts of cannabis.

 

One gram of cannabis

Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press One gram of dried cannabis bud.
Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press One gram of dried cannabis bud.

Pictured here is one gram of dried cannabis bud, which is the basic unit of sale for cannabis in both the legal and illegal markets. One gram might yield between one and four joints.

(This particular strain of cannabis is Super Lemon Haze, grown by Winnipeg’s Delta 9 Cannabis. Delta 9 sells this strain to registered medical cannabis users for $9 per gram.)

Measuring cannabis can be especially confusing because non-metric units are also used, especially in the black market.

Common imperial measurements used for marijuana are pounds (roughly 453.6 grams); ounces (about 28 grams); half-ounces (14 grams); quarter-ounces (7 grams); and eighth-ounces (3.5 grams). Black-market cannabis dealers often offer bulk discounts.

 

Five grams of cannabis

Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Five grams of dried cannabis bud.
Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Five grams of dried cannabis bud.

Feast your eyes on five grams of cannabis bud. It weighs a little less than the loonie shown for comparison (which weighs in at almost seven grams).

The Cannabis Act, which is not yet law, would permit Canadians between the ages of 12 and 18 to possess up to five grams of cannabis without facing criminal prosecution.

Young people caught carrying more than five grams could face sentences under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. The federal government says it wants to prevent young Canadians from being saddled with criminal records for possession of small amounts of cannabis.

Individual provinces can also create their own laws regarding youth possession of cannabis, and could even lower the proposed federal limit of five grams.

 

Ten grams of cannabis

Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Ten grams of dried cannabis bud.
Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Ten grams of dried cannabis bud.

Now we’re into the double digits: behold, 10 grams of weed.

Dried bud like this can be smoked or vaporized, but there are other ways to consume cannabis: edible products made with cannabis oil or butter; concentrates such as hashish or shatter; topical creams; and even pills. 

Schedule 3 of the proposed Cannabis Act sets out the legal weight equivalents for these different kinds of cannabis preparations. One gram of dried cannabis bud, for example, will be equivalent to 0.25 grams of solid concentrates or five grams of freshly harvested cannabis. One cannabis seed will be the legal equivalent of one gram of dried cannabis.

 

Thirty grams of cannabis

Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Thirty grams of dried cannabis bud.
Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press Thirty grams of dried cannabis bud.

This picture shows 30 grams of cannabis, or slightly more than one ounce.

Thirty grams of legally produced marijuana will be the federal government’s legal limit on public possession for Canadian adults if the Cannabis Act becomes law. (There will not be a legal limit on possession in private, according to the Department of Justice.)

Under the Cannabis Act, individual Canadian adults will be able to legally share (but not buy or sell) up to 30 grams of dried cannabis or the equivalent with their peers.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Toronto’s alternative crisis response model deemed a success

Toronto’s alternative crisis response model deemed a success

Scott Billeck 4 minute read Preview

Toronto’s alternative crisis response model deemed a success

Scott Billeck 4 minute read Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT

A Toronto emergency response program that helped inspire Winnipeg’s proposed alternative crisis response model has already expanded city-wide, just four years after launching as a pilot project.

The Toronto Community Crisis Service, launched in 2022, has become the city’s fourth emergency service, providing a 24-7, community-based response to people experiencing mental health crises. The service has handled nearly 50,000 calls through 911 and 211, dispatched mobile crisis teams to more than 41,000 incidents, made more than 11,600 referrals to health and social services and resolved the majority of eligible 911 calls without police involvement.

Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham last week proposed creating a similar “fourth crisis response pathway” that would allow 911 calls that aren’t violent or criminal in nature to be transferred to community-based crisis teams.

Under the proposal, which has support from both the Winnipeg Police Service and the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service, a centralized crisis dispatch and co-ordination hub would receive triaged calls and match them with citywide response teams, staffed in part through existing community organizations, including the Downtown Community Safety Partnership and The Link’s mobile crisis teams. The goal is to divert appropriate calls away from the WPS and WFPS.

Read
Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT
Gene J. Puskar / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES With the addition of Stuart Skinner, the Winnipeg Jets have the makings of featuring the best one-two punch between the pipes in the NHL this season.

Central remains toughest division in league

Ken Wiebe 8 minute read Preview

Central remains toughest division in league

Ken Wiebe 8 minute read Yesterday at 6:35 PM CDT

With NHL training camps set to open in just over five weeks’ time, the Central Division still looks like one of the toughest places to earn a playoff spot in the league.

With three of the top seven teams in the NHL standings last season residing within it — including the Presidents’ Trophy winning Colorado Avalanche (121 points) — it’s clear that the most likely path back to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the Winnipeg Jets is by earning one of the two wild-card berths available in the Western Conference.

And since a couple of teams in the Pacific Division are on the rise, including the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks (who missed the playoffs by four points in Macklin Celebrini’s second NHL season), it’s likely going to take north of 90 or 92 points to punch a post-season ticket.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the moves that were made in the Central, realizing there are a few questions left unanswered for the Jets and the seven other clubs:

Read
Yesterday at 6:35 PM CDT
Jonathan Brady / The Associated Press Files Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, is 45 today.

Today’s horoscope

Georgia Nicols 4 minute read Preview

Today’s horoscope

Georgia Nicols 4 minute read Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT

MOON ALERT: Caution. Avoid shopping (except food and gas) and important decisions from 1:15 p.m. until 10 p.m. After that, the moon moves from Aries into Taurus.

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

You have lots of mental energy because the moon is in your sign dancing with your ruler fiery Mars, which pushes you into a leadership role. It makes you feel independent and ready to challenge anyone who challenges you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

Read
Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT
JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS Winnipeg Goldeyes’ Luke Boyd (37) throws against the Chicago Dogs in Winnipeg Tuesday, August 4, 2026.

Goldeyes pitcher Boyd making most out of his visit to Winnipeg

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Preview

Goldeyes pitcher Boyd making most out of his visit to Winnipeg

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Yesterday at 10:36 PM CDT

Not that long ago it seemed very unlikely that Luke Boyd was going to turn into one of the American Association’s best pitchers.

He began the 2025 campaign with the Cleburne Railroaders but was released two weeks into the year after getting torched for nine runs in less than seven innings of work.

The Baylor University product was unsure if he would have a future in pro ball after that, but then, his old pal Logan Watkins — the manager of the Winnipeg Goldeyes — threw him a lifeline.

Watkins managed Boyd in Cleburne in 2023 before taking the job in Winnipeg.

Read
Yesterday at 10:36 PM CDT
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Chef Mike Licharson with dishes using ingredients sourced from Assiniboine Park and The Leaf biomes at the Gather restaurant on Wednesday, May 27, 2026. For AV story. Free Press 2026

Homegrown grub: Resto turns to the Leaf for freshest ingredients

AV Kitching 4 minute read Preview

Homegrown grub: Resto turns to the Leaf for freshest ingredients

AV Kitching 4 minute read Yesterday at 3:39 PM CDT

The term “eat local” has taken on a whole new meaning at Gather Craft Kitchen and Bar, where the journey from plot to plate is measured in footsteps rather than miles.

Head chef Mike Licharson has expanded the restaurant’s focus on local sourcing by incorporating fruit and vegetables grown in The Leaf’s biomes and outdoor kitchen garden into his menu.

Bananas from the tropical biomes star in his banana-bread French toast and accompanying banana compote. Leeks, braised slowly and paired with Manitoba-grown beluga lentils, and Swiss chard — which takes the place of grape leaves in Licharson’s play on classic meze dolmades, a nod to the chef’s Greek-Ukrainian-Irish heritage — are both grown in the outdoor kitchen garden.

The park’s produce complements the restaurant’s other locally sourced ingredients, Licharson says.

Read
Yesterday at 3:39 PM CDT

Cyril Ramaphosa and South African law

Gwynne Dyer 5 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

It’s outrageous. You’re at your hobby farm in the country, just pottering around, so you stuff the $580,000 in your pocket under the sofa cushions temporarily, just to get it out of the way. Then you forget it when you are gathering things up to go back to the city. It could happen to anybody.

However, thieves break into your country house while you’re away and steal the money. You consider reporting it to the police, but you know they are struggling to keep up with the crime wave, so you decide to forget about it.

Even though it was foreign currency, you don’t report it to the tax authorities, either, because you never got to spend it. Or something like that.

But then events take a turn decidedly for the worse. A man called Arthur Fraser sends a dossier to the police reporting that you got the money and that it was not actually $580,000 but a whole $4 million. And since Mr. Fraser was the country’s former chief spy, they take him seriously and come to you looking for answers.