How Much THC Is In A Joint?

Whether you’re a seasoned stoner or new to smoking cannabis, you might’ve wondered about the amount of THC that’s in a joint. 

So, how much THC is in a joint?

Honestly, it depends. 

Keep on reading to discover the several factors that determine the amount of THC in a typical joint, whether it’s a preroll or rolled by hand.

Key Takeaways: MG THC Content In A Joint

• As a rough estimate, a joint can contain anywhere from 40-250 milligrams of THC.
• Calculating the amount of THC in joints is extremely easy (see below).
• Your body can only absorb a portion of the THC a joint contains.
• Vaping is more effective than smoking joints if you’re after maximum bioavailability, even if you have a perfect puff technique.

How Much THC Is In A Typical Joint?

While joints come in all sizes, research shows the average joint contains about 0.32 grams of weed. 

If you’re rolling your own Js, whether massive or tiny pinners, expect them to contain between 40-250 milligrams THC. Same thing goes for pre-rolls purchased at your local dispo.  

The two main things that determine the active THC percentage in a joint depend on the amount of THC in the strain and the joint size. 

THC concentrations in various strains can range from barely potent at 12%, up to super potent levels of 30% and higher. 

Pre-rolls purchased at a dispensary usually break down the amount of weed that’s in them, as well as the percentages of other compounds.

If pre-rolls aren’t your thing, we’ll teach you how to calculate a rough estimate of the THC in the joints you roll by hand.

How to Calculate the THC in a Joint

To calculate how many milligrams of THC your joint has, simply multiply the weight of your joint by the THC percentage in the strain.

If you’re rolling a one gram joint with weed that has a 12% THC concentration:

• 1000 mg (one gram) X 0.12 = 120 total milligrams of THC weight.

If you’re rolling a smaller, half gram joint:

• 500 milligrams X 0.12 = 60 total milligrams of THC weight.

However, this simple equation is actually a bit more complicated than it seems because your body absorbs less THC than is in joints.

Basically this means that this method will only calculate the amount of  THC in the joint, not how much your body absorbs once you smoke it.

Not All The THC Is Absorbed

Now that you know the average amount of THC that’s in a jay, let’s see how much of it’s actually absorbed by your body after smoking it.

No matter how precise your calculations are, not all of the THC consumed in the mainstream smoke will make it into your body to cause an active effect (aka get you high).

This is caused by several factors. 

As any seasoned toker knows, the cherry on the joint can become too big, which can overheat the weed and burn off precious cannabinoids before you even smoke them. 

Even if you’re got your puff technique dialed, a poorly rolled joint can smoke unevenly and contribute to the amount of THC that makes its way into the bloodstream. 

Another important factor is THC bioavailability. 

How exactly does bioavailability affect the amount of THC absorbed using different consumption methods?

Bioavailability is a word used to describe how much of the active compound in a drug (or vitamin supplements) makes it to the bloodstream to cause an active effect.

When cannabis is consumed by the body, a certain amount will absorb into the bloodstream. Bioavailability is how much THC the body actually uses. 

Different cannabis products like vape carts, tinctures, edibles and joints all contain a certain bioavailability. 

If you want to make the most out of your weed, look into vaping. Vaping weed actually increases how much THC makes it into the lungs, thus delivering more of the compound to the bloodstream and increasing its bioavailability and proportionate active effect. 

Vaping is one of the most efficient ways to consume herb, ultimately boosting the percentage of THC that’s consumed and absorbed by your body.

The best part? Vaping provides other benefits aside from higher bioavailability compared to smoke. It delivers cannabinoids more efficiently to the lungs and less tar is inhaled. Most people also agree that vaping weed tastes better than smoking it.

How To Increase The Amount of THC In A Joint

While vaping might be better when it comes to bioavailability, there are ways to intentionally increase the potency of your typical joint. Check it out. 

Joint Size

The most straightforward method to increase the amount of THC is to roll bigger joints.   More weed will automatically increase the potency and presence of all cannabinoids.

Higher Percentage THC Flower

Spend a little more on quality flower.  Fire weed usually has a higher amount of THC. If you want more THC in a joint, ask your budtender what strains have the most THC. 

Keep in mind that how much THC your doob contains isn’t the only thing that will determine its potency. THC is definitely the biggest influence of how high you’ll get, but terpenes, cannabinoids and other compounds are other factors that influence potency. 

Avoid The Wind

The wind is your number one enemy when it comes to THC in your doobie. Joints simply burn faster when it’s windy. There’s more air resistance. 

This means what could’ve been mainstream smoke making its way to your lungs after one inhalation simply vanishes into the elements.

Wrapping Up

How much THC is in a joint?

As you’ve just learned, it depends on a few factors.  

While jays are easy to consume and a convenient way to get high, a full gram joint won’t come close to the potency of a gram of vaporized cannabis, no matter how dialed your puff technique. 

If you want to make the most of your smoke sesh, vaping is where it’s at because it contains higher bioavailability. 

But joints are super convenient, easily smoked and there are still plenty of ways to increase the potency they contain.