According to new research, 36% of Canadian adults have used Cannabis in the past year – more than double the amount who said the same at the time of legalization in 2018.

Those are the latest insights from Vividata, which took data from its SCC database of 40,000 survey respondents.

The research firm found that number of current users over the age of 50 has spiked, tripling in size since 2018. But other age groups have also grown, such as 2.6 more cannabis users between 35 and 49, with millennials and adult Gen Z users both doubling.

The Vividata numbers also show that the number of “potential” cannabis users is projected at 4.2 million, or nearly 14% of Canadians of legal age. That market has grown by roughly 500,000 over the last two years, a time span when the number of current users grew by 3.5 million.

Traditional bud or flower is neck-and-neck with edible forms as the most popular form of cannabis, though the latter’s popularity has spiked as more legal options have hit the market. Among potential users, edibles and gel capsules are especially popular for those over 50. Topicals, tinctures and beverages appeal more to potential users between 35 to 49. Meanwhile, flower, bud and vapes are most appealing to potential users under 35.

While cannabis continues to be associated with pain relief even among potential users, using cannabis to help with mental health has grown in allure among all age groups. For current users, the primary motivations for consuming cannabis include to relax and unwind (54%), as a sleep aid (43%) and pain relief (38%).

Free shipping and shopping at a discount are most important to both recreational users and health and wellness users. Overall, the report points out that there is a higher percentage of health and wellness users who value these retail experiences compared to those who use cannabis recreationally.

Overall, health and wellness users spend more per purchase on flower compared to recreational users, but recreational users spend more on all other forms of cannabis.

In a market with countless options and various cannabis products available, health and wellness users are more likely than recreational users to value knowledgeable staff when shopping in-store. Also, health and wellness users are more likely to value friendliness, product variety and recommendations from staff.

Canopy Growth and its Tweed brand tops the brand awareness list for both recreational (34%) and health and wellness (37%) segments, followed by Organigram’s Trailblazer (29%) and Aurora’s Drift (32%).

Finally, the number of consumers turning to the illicit market sources for cannabis has fallen, down from 26% in 2019 to 11% today.