"Marijuana (Cannabis)
"In 2024, marijuana use declined in all three grades for lifetime, past 12-month, and past 30-day use. The 12th grade decline in past 12-month use was statistically significant. Despite these declines, the 2024 levels remain substantial, with the percentage of students using marijuana in the last 12 months at 26% in 12th grade, 16% in 10th grade, and 7% in 8th grade.
"The substantial declines from 2020 to 2021 during the onset of the pandemic mark the first substantial change in marijuana prevalence in more than a decade; previous to 2021, marijuana levels had hovered without any systematic trending for about a decade. These lower levels have persisted in the following years and did not rebound.
"Levels of annual marijuana use today are considerably lower than the historic highs observed in the late 1970s, when more than half of 12th graders had used marijuana in the past 12 months. This high point marked the pinnacle of a rise in marijuana use from negligible levels before the 1960s.
"Daily marijuana use, defined as use on 20 or more occasions in the past 30 days, decreased slightly in 12th and 8th grades and held steady in 10th grade. The 2024 levels remained below the 2021 levels, which reflect a sharp drop during the pandemic-era social distancing policies. In 8th grade, prevalence has hovered between 0.2% and 2% since first tracked in 1991.
"The prevalence of using marijuana daily for a month or more during one's lifetime is reported for 12th graders only. That prevalence was at 21% when first measured in 1982, declined sharply to just 8% by 1992, and rose back to 19% by 1997. This was then followed by a long gradual decline to 12% by 2018 before leveling. It stood at 13% in 2024.
"Medical Marijuana (Cannabis)
"Since 2017, the survey has included the question 'Have you ever used ‘medical marijuana;’ that is, marijuana you used because a doctor told you to use it?' Prevalence has hovered between 1% and 4% in all years in all three grades and has not systematically trended."
Miech, R. A., Johnston, L. D., Patrick, M. E., & O'Malley, P. M. (2025). Monitoring the Future national survey results on drug use, 1975–2024: Overview and detailed results for secondary school students. Monitoring the Future Monograph Series. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan.
