BC Cannabis Stores vs Private Stores: Where to Buy Legally in BC

British Columbia runs a hybrid system. The Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) is the only wholesaler of non-medical cannabis in the province, and it also runs its own retail chain, BC Cannabis Stores. Private retailers compete with that chain while buying their inventory from it. For a shopper, the choice comes down to location, delivery, price and selection, not legality.

Our take: which one to pick

Who runs what: the government wholesaler supplies its own competitors

The LDB buys from federally licensed producers and ships to every legal store in the province, public or private. Its October–December 2025 wholesale report counted 522 retail stores with sales, private and public combined. In 2025, consumers spent $900 million at authorized BC cannabis retailers, according to the province's April 2026 Legal Market Strategy.

Ordering online: $6 flat from the government, store-by-store rules from private shops

BC Cannabis Stores charges a flat $6 plus tax regardless of order size, ships only to BC addresses by Canada Post, and requires two pieces of ID at the door, one of them government-issued and proving you are 19 or older. Weekend orders leave on Monday. Some remote postal codes cannot receive vapes with lithium batteries because of air-freight rules, the chain's shipping page says.

Private stores gained delivery rights in two steps. From July 15, 2021 licensees and their own employees could deliver to residential addresses; third-party apps were barred. From July 8, 2022 they could also use common carriers such as Canada Post and delivery-service providers working on the store's behalf. The 30 g per-transaction cap applies to every delivery order.

Prices: same wholesaler, different shelf tags

Because everyone buys from the LDB, price differences come from retail margins, promotions and store size rather than supply. The LDB's wholesale data gives a floor: dried flower averaged $3.10 per gram at wholesale in October–December 2025, and 28 g packages were the largest flower format by sales. Stores add their margin, GST and PST on top.

That quarter also overlapped a BCGEU strike that halted LDB cannabis operations from September 22 to October 27, 2025, so year-over-year drops in that report partly reflect the shutdown.

Checking that a private store is licensed

The province tells buyers to look for three things in a legal store, and it publishes both a map and a downloadable list of every licensed retailer.

• Licence number on display — a provincial licence or authorization number posted in the store.
• "Licensed retailer" decal — on the store window.
• Responsible-use posters — required in licensed stores.
• Listed on the LCRB map — search the address on the province's retail-store map before you buy.
• Excise stamp on every package — the federal stamp is the quickest product-level check.

More on this in our licence-check guide.

Rules that follow you out of either store

Legal age

19+

Per purchase

30 g dried or equivalent

In public

30 g dried or equivalent

At home

1,000 g per household

Home grow

4 plants per household

In a car

30 g, sealed or out of the driver's reach

Adults may smoke or vape cannabis where tobacco smoking and vaping are allowed, but not on K–12 school grounds, playgrounds, sports fields, skate parks and similar places where children gather, according to the provincial government.

For other provinces, see where to buy in each province or the British Columbia hub. This guide is general information, not legal advice.