Updated Sep 24, 2026 74 licenses checkedMedical only

Washington, DC dispensaries: 77 medical retailers, street by street

Verdex lists 77 ABCA-licensed medical dispensaries in Washington, DC, 11 on Georgia Avenue NW and 8 on 14th Street NW. Adult-use retail is still blocked.

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Dispensaries rated: 74
License verified: 74

Georgia Avenue NW alone holds 11 of the 77 licensed dispensaries Verdex lists for Washington, DC. Every one of them is a medical retailer registered with the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA), because Congress's Harris rider still stops the District from licensing adult-use stores. The House passed the spending bill carrying that rider 341-79 in January 2026, according to Marijuana Moment.

The count is so high because the Medical Cannabis Amendment Act of 2022, signed on January 31, 2023, removed the cap on licences, according to Cannabis Business Times. Names range from District Wellness Center on Georgia Avenue to Cookies DC on U Street.

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Showing 20 of 74 dispensaries in Washington

Map 77 pins

Pins show sellers with a published street address. Online-only sellers appear in the list only.

641 public warnings about sellers in the United States

Regulator actions, recalls and look-alike sites we track. Check a shop or link before you pay.

See the Red List

Where the 77 licences cluster

Most of the map falls along a few avenues. This table counts Verdex's register entries by street.

Street	Entries	Examples
Georgia Avenue NW	11	District Cure (2626), District Wellness Center (4915), Kush Embassy (7530)
14th Street NW	8	District Gas Light (1738), Green Label (3401), GreenLegacy (4630)
18th Street NW	4	Embers (1821), Flowerpatch (2116), Wash Hydro (2318)
U Street NW	3	Firehouse DC (912), Cookies DC (1115), Doobie District (1526)
Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE	2	Anacostia Organics (2022), Therapy (2923)

The rest are spread from Georgetown (M Street) to H Street NE and Capitol Hill's Pennsylvania Avenue SE. A shop's name does not tell you its licence: New Leaf Smoke Shop and Royal Tobacco DC both carry ABCA numbers, while a business with no number may be a gifting shop, which is illegal. According to the ABCA, more than 100 such unlicensed shops had been padlocked by spring 2026.

Licence numbers: the ABCA register uses numbers of the form ABCA-127954. Ask for it, or run it through our licence-check guide.
Same brand, several licences: Bloom @ North, UpNSmoke and New Leaf Smoke Shop each hold two.
Drinks: in April 2026 Mayor Bowser proposed letting breweries and distilleries partner with licensed operators on THC drinks, according to Outlaw Report. It is a proposal, not law.

For the self-certification steps and the rules for visitors, see our D.C. hub.

Questions about this list

Why are there so many dispensaries in DC if recreational sales are banned?

They are all medical. The Medical Cannabis Amendment Act of 2022 removed licence caps, and adults can self-certify as patients, so the medical counters serve almost anyone 21 and over. Congress's Harris rider blocks true adult-use retail.

Which DC street has the most dispensaries?

Georgia Avenue NW, with 11 of the 77 register entries Verdex lists, from 2626 Georgia Avenue to 7530 Georgia Avenue in the north of the city. 14th Street NW is next with 8.

How can I tell a licensed DC dispensary from a gifting shop?

Look for an ABCA licence number on the door and on the register. Shops that hand over cannabis with a sticker or T-shirt sale are unlicensed and illegal, and the ABCA had padlocked more than 100 of them by spring 2026.

Buying in District Of Columbia

Minimum age
21 to possess, grow or self-certify as a medical patient; residents under 21 need a practitioner's recommendation (minors via a caregiver)
Possession (Initiative 71)
Up to 2 oz for adults 21+; giving away up to 1 oz with no payment is allowed; selling is a crime
Buying
Only at ABCA-licensed medical retailers with a DC or reciprocal patient registration plus government photo ID
Purchase limit
8 oz per registered patient in a rolling 30-day period

Summary, not legal advice — rules change; check local law.

How this list is ranked

License & compliance25%
Customer reviews25%
Lab & product transparency20%
Pricing & value10%
Service & access10%
Complaint handling10%

Scores come from license records, published lab results, prices and public reviews. Sellers can’t pay to change their position.

How we rate

Washington, DC dispensaries: 77 medical retailers, street by street

Where the 77 licences cluster

Questions about this list

Minimum age

Possession (Initiative 71)

Buying

Purchase limit