Since January 2021, according to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), sales generated from out-of-state residents have averaged more than $30 million every month for the last three years.
While sales have dipped below $30 million for individual months, as recently as January 2024, the average overall remains around $33.4 million per month.
Out-of-state sales have thus far accounted for more than 22% of total revenue in 2024, which has dropped over the years after reaching a high water mark of 30% in 2022. For example, out-of-state sales accounted for a little more than a quarter of total sales when the market opened in 2020, hit about 28% of the market in 2021 and 25% of the state’s revenue in last year.
Illinois began recreational cannabis sales on January 1, 2020.
According to the IDFPR, the agency can track in-state and out-of-state sales, but it can’t track state-by-state breakdowns.
The state should continue to see a steady influx of cannabis commuters for the foreseeable future as Wisconsin's effort to legalize medical marijuana was dead on arrival and it remains completely prohibited in Indiana as legalization efforts continue to stall.
In Iowa, recreational-use remains illegal, but the state does have limited medical laws. The state will likely add more medical dispensaries soon, but it has trouble with the black market and other unregulated competition.
Cannabis is fully legal in Missouri, and Kentucky’s medical program is scheduled to come online next year, but the state still hasn’t released licensing regulations, which has kept potential players at bay.
