Yes, weed is legal in Colorado Springs for adults 21 and older. You can possess up to two ounces, grow a limited number of plants at home, and consume on private property. Medical dispensaries have operated in the city for years, and in November 2024, voters approved Ballot Question 300 authorizing recreational retail sales for the first time.1Ballotpedia. Colorado Springs Ballot Question 300, Regulations on Recreational Marijuana Retail Sales Initiative (November 2024) The local rules are stricter than in many other Colorado cities, so the details matter.
How Much You Can Have
Adults 21 and older can possess up to two ounces of marijuana in Colorado Springs. The limit applies the same way whether you bought it, grew it, or were given it.2Justia Law. Colorado Code 18-18-406 – Offenses Relating to Marijuana and Marijuana Concentrate You can also give up to two ounces to another adult 21 or older as a gift, provided no money changes hands. Selling without a license is a separate and more serious offense.3Cannabis. Laws About Cannabis Use
Going over two ounces is a criminal offense:
- More than 2 ounces but no more than 6 ounces is a level 2 drug misdemeanor, carrying up to 364 days in jail and a fine up to $1,000.
- More than 6 ounces is a level 1 drug misdemeanor, with incarceration up to 18 months.
Anyone under 21 is covered by Colorado’s minor-in-possession law, which starts at a $100 fine and mandatory drug education for a first offense and escalates from there.2Justia Law. Colorado Code 18-18-406 – Offenses Relating to Marijuana and Marijuana Concentrate
Where You Can Buy It
Medical dispensaries have been legal in Colorado Springs for years. To shop at one, you need a valid registry identification card from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which requires a qualifying condition documented by a physician.4FindLaw. Colorado Constitution Article XVIII Section 14 – Medical Use of Marijuana for Persons Suffering From Debilitating Medical Conditions The state processing fee is $52 per application or renewal, non-refundable, and you pay your physician separately for the evaluation.5Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. How to Apply for a Colorado Medical Marijuana Card
Recreational retail is a newer story. For more than a decade after Colorado legalized adult-use marijuana statewide in 2012, the city used its authority to ban recreational storefronts, which state law permits municipalities to do.6Colorado General Assembly. Retail Marijuana – Colorado Law Summary That changed on November 5, 2024, when 54.68% of voters approved Ballot Question 300. The measure limits recreational licenses to businesses that already held a medical marijuana license as of that date, keeps all stores at least 1,000 feet from schools, preschools, and daycares, and adds a 5% city sales tax on recreational sales. If you’re new to the area, confirm with the City Clerk’s Office whether a given storefront has completed the licensing transition before you plan a trip.7City of Colorado Springs. Marijuana Licensing
Tax is a real reason to think about which type of store you use. Medical marijuana carries only the standard 2.9% state sales tax and is exempt from the 15% state retail marijuana sales tax and the 15% excise tax that recreational products face.8Colorado General Assembly. Marijuana Taxes Add the city’s new 5% recreational tax on top, and the gap is wide. For regular users, keeping a medical card often pays for itself.
Where You Can Use It
Legal consumption means private property with the owner or landlord’s consent. Public use is illegal: no sidewalks, no parks, no outdoor events, nothing visible to the public. The penalty for public consumption of two ounces or less is a fine up to $100 and up to 24 hours of community service.2Justia Law. Colorado Code 18-18-406 – Offenses Relating to Marijuana and Marijuana Concentrate
Private doesn’t automatically mean yours to use. Many Colorado Springs landlords include lease clauses prohibiting marijuana on the premises, and those clauses are enforceable. Using in your apartment against a lease ban can be grounds for eviction regardless of state law. Colorado does license on-site consumption establishments through state and local approval, but Colorado Springs has not been among the cities embracing that model.
Growing at Home
State law lets each resident 21 or older grow up to six plants, with no more than three flowering at a time. Plants must be in an enclosed, locked area that isn’t visible from outside, cannot be grown outdoors, and must be in a separate locked space if anyone under 21 lives in the home.9Cannabis. Home Grow Laws
Colorado Springs adds a local layer. The city’s municipal code makes it unlawful to cultivate marijuana plants and separately prohibits growing more than twelve plants per residential property, with no more than half in a mature flowering state. Licensed medical marijuana cultivators and growers who comply with the city’s zoning code have an affirmative defense.10amlegal. Colorado Springs Code 9.7.211 – Cultivation of Marijuana If you intend to grow, check both the state plant limits and the city’s zoning rules before you start.
Driving
Driving under the influence of marijuana is treated like drunk driving. A blood test showing five or more nanograms of delta-9 THC per milliliter creates a legal presumption that you are impaired.11Cannabis. Driving and Traveling Because THC lingers, regular users can test above that level long after their last use. Prosecutors don’t need a blood result; observable impairment can carry a case on its own.
Inside the vehicle, no one, driver or passenger, may open cannabis packaging or consume, even when parked. A broken seal plus signs of use in the car can mean a traffic charge.11Cannabis. Driving and Traveling
A first DUI conviction brings 5 days to 1 year in jail, fines between $600 and $1,000, 48 to 96 hours of community service, and a 9-month license revocation. Second and third convictions bring longer mandatory jail, higher fines, and longer suspensions, and a third within seven years triggers a five-year revocation as a habitual traffic offender.12Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Drunk Driving Laws – Colorado Law Summary
Federal Land and Military Bases
This matters more in Colorado Springs than almost anywhere else in the state. Fort Carson, Peterson Space Force Base, the U.S. Air Force Academy, Schriever Space Force Base, and NORAD at Cheyenne Mountain are all federal property, where marijuana is completely illegal regardless of state or city law.
Federal law classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance. A first simple-possession conviction on federal land carries up to one year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine. A second raises the maximum to two years and the minimum fine to $2,500. A third pushes it to three years and a $5,000 minimum.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 21 USC 844 – Penalty for Simple Possession Military personnel face additional consequences under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, up to discharge.
The same rule covers national forests and national parks. The U.S. Forest Service treats possession, use, sale, or cultivation of cannabis on National Forest System lands as illegal and requires a mandatory appearance before a federal magistrate.14United States Forest Service. Cannabis Use on National Forest System Lands Heading into Pike National Forest or any federal land nearby? Leave the marijuana at home.
Employment and Drug Testing
Colorado law does not stop most employers from testing for marijuana or acting on a positive result. A 2022 bill that would have prohibited employers from firing workers for off-duty marijuana use failed in the state legislature.15Colorado General Assembly. HB22-1152 Prohibit Employer Adverse Action Marijuana Use In Colorado Springs, the concentration of federal contractors, defense industry employers, and safety-sensitive positions means zero-tolerance policies are common. If your job involves federal contracts, a security clearance, or Department of Defense work, assume marijuana use is incompatible with keeping it, no matter what state or local law allows.