**You must be 21+ to consume edibles. Never partake and drive, and do not consume edibles while pregnant or nursing.**
Accessible, delicious, and easy to consume, cannabis edibles are among the best ways to partake — especially if you’re new to getting high. But choosing the correct dose of edible to take isn’t always easy, even if you’re a veteran of other forms of weed.
And here’s the thing: your entire edible experience depends on how much you consume. Have too much, and you’re likely to have an overwhelming experience you won’t be eager to repeat. Have too little, and you may not feel anything. So how do you find that sweet spot dosage that will get you just the right kind of high? Let’s break it down.
We’re about to get into all the nitty-gritty details about dosing that you need to know to truly understand how a gummy, mint, or square of chocolate is going to affect you. But before we do, here’s a dosage cheat sheet.
*Remember that THC affects each of us differently. While the experience and effects we cover here are what users tend to notice in general, they may not reflect your experience.
Effects: May cause a gentle sense of relaxation, increased feelings of well-being, a lifted mood, and increased creativity and focus. At this dose, most users don’t report feeling intoxicated or experiencing euphoria.
Good for: We recommend starting with a microdose of 1.25 - 2.5 mg if you’ve never tried cannabis before. Many also find this to be a nice dose for subtly elevating their experience as they move through their day-to-day life.
Try: Clocking in at just 2.5 mg of THC, Kiva’s Petra Mints are a great place to start if you’re looking for a low dose. For those who prefer gummies, pop a Camino Sparkling Pear ‘Social,’ which contains just 2 mg of THC.
Effects: New users may feel intoxicated with a mild sense of euphoria and a gentle altering of coordination and perception. Some users report feeling more at ease, making it a popular choice for winding down in the evening.
Good for: This tends to be the sweet spot dose for those looking for a mild and controlled high, even if they’re more experienced edible consumers. Many users also find that this is a great dose for general recreational use, as well as if you’re looking for ways to enhance your nighttime relaxation routine.
Try: 5 mg of THC is one of the most common doses you’ll see on the shelf at your local dispensary, which means you have no shortage of options. The majority of Camino’s gummies clock in at 5 mg of THC a piece; go for Wild Berry ‘Chill’, Midnight Blueberry ‘Sleep’, or Freshly Squeezed ‘Recover’. If chocolate is more your thing, try Kiva’s Dark Chocolate bars, which contain 5 mg THC per square, or Terra’s 5mg chocolate-covered dried blueberry bites.
Effects: Most users report feeling intoxicated at this dose. Your senses may feel heightened, coordination might be a little slower, and you may notice a more intense experience of physical relaxation (hello, couch lock!). You may also feel euphoric, giggly, and loose. That said, those with a lower tolerance or who are new to edibles might experience a bit of paranoia and discomfort at this dose.
Good for: High-tolerance users and those ready for a more intensely intoxicating experience.
Try: Lost Farm’s selection of 10 mg gummies and chews all combine delicious flavors with iconic cannabis strains. Start with the 10 mg Raspberry x Wedding Cake Live Resin Gummies, which took home fourth place at the Emerald Cup Awards, or try the 10 mg Blueberry x Durban Poison Live Resin Chews.
Effects: This strongly intoxicating dose is often a go-to for more experienced users looking to really enjoy their high. Newbies, however, should steer clear, as you’re more likely to experience impaired coordination, dizziness, nausea, and greening out.
Good for: High-tolerance users.
Try: Camino 25 mg Wild Berry ‘Chill’ High Dose is a great gummy for highly experienced users.
Effects: This is the kind of dose that will send you to the moon. For anyone outside of highly experienced edibles users, this dose will cause major impairment to coordination and perception. In most, it will also produce undesirable effects like paranoia, nausea, and dizziness.
Good for: Extremely experienced users with exceptionally high tolerance only.
Try: For highly experienced users, we offer Camino 50 mg THC: 10 mg CBN Midnight Blueberry ‘Sleep’ High Dose
The general dosage guide we just ran through should help you find the right dose to take next time you reach for an edible. But there are a few additional tips and tricks that can also help you have that Goldilocks just-right experience.
When you’re looking at an edible package, you may see a few different milligram labels. Most packages will list both the milligrams per serving and the total milligrams of THC the package contains. In most states, the total amount of THC per package can’t exceed 100 milligrams, so the smaller number is the one you want to pay the most attention to, as that is what should be in a single square of chocolate, gummy, chew, or mint.
This is the golden rule of cannabis consumption. It's always a good idea to start with a smaller dose than you think you’ll need the first time you try a new edible product and give it plenty of time to kick in (more on that in a moment). Remember, it’s always easy to take more, but once you’ve taken too much, the only thing you can do is ride out the discomfort that can come with being too high.
One of the most important things to know about edibles is that they have a delayed onset time and can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours to fully kick in. This is why we can’t stress the go slow portion of the golden rule enough. It’s easy to mistake the delayed onset time for having taken too low a dose, so be sure to always give yourself a solid 2 hours after consuming an edible for your high to fully take off before deciding if you want to have more.
Most edibles contain a mix of THC, other non-psychoactive cannabinoids like CBD, CBN, and CBG, and terpenes (compounds found in all plants that are responsible for aroma and flavor, and are thought to also produce other mental and physical effects). Thanks to the entourage effect, the ratio of THC to these other cannabinoids and terpenes may affect the experience of your high. For example, you might find a 1:1 THC to CBD ratio creates a nicely balanced high, while a 1:1 or 2:1 THC to CBN ratio may up the relaxation vibes.
Taking too strong a dose for your tolerance level is undeniably uncomfortable. The experience is often called “greening out,” although it doesn’t come with the same level of memory impairment that “blacking out” from drinking too much alcohol might. Like alcohol, however, the line between having a good time and consuming too much can be thin and varies for everyone, so be sure to pay attention to how you’re feeling.
The effects you might experience if you’ve taken more THC than you can handle include:
First and foremost, don’t panic. As we said, taking too much can definitely be uncomfortable, but dangerously overdosing on weed is rare. The main thing to do is to keep yourself as comfortable as possible as you wait out the high. Here are a few things to try:
And it goes without saying, but we’ll do so anyway: never get behind the wheel after partaking, especially if you’ve had too much.
Still got questions about how to take the right THC dose? We’ve got answers.
Taking 2 - 2.5 mg the first time you try edibles is the place that most people are recommended to start. You may feel slightly high at this dose, but are unlikely to experience intense intoxication. If you find that dose didn’t quite do it for you, try taking a little bit more (up to 5 mg) next time you partake.
Most beginners will find a 10 mg THC dose too intense. Consuming an edible at this dose might induce strong feelings of intoxication, which can outweigh the euphoric and relaxing effects that most are trying to achieve.
Overdosing on edibles is extremely rare. While you can take too much to feel uncomfortably high, those effects pass for most within 8-10 hours after consumption.
The sweet spot for an even, everyday high for users with a high tolerance can range from 10 - 20 mg THC. It's worth noting, however, that many find edible highs to be more intense than those that come from smoking or vaping. That means that even if you have a high tolerance when using other forms of cannabis, the same rule applies to your first edibles experience: start low and go slow.
Knowing where to start when it comes to THC doses can feel overwhelming, and we hope this guide has made finding the right dose for you a little bit easier. At Kiva, we’re committed to making the dosage labels and information on all of our products — from 2 mg Camino Gummies to 10 mg Lost Farm chews — as easy as possible to understand. We also hold all of our products to rigorous quality standards and provide COAs that break down exactly how much THC (as well as other cannabinoids and terpenes) is in each batch.
So, if you’re ready to stock up, check out our shop (or ask for us at your local dispensary) to find the right edibles, at the right dose, for you (and do be aware of imitators!). If you’re in a state where recreational cannabis is not yet legal, check out our line of hemp-derived THC gummies here.
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