Cannabis retailers’ marketing practices and compliance with state regulations: A 2025 point-of-sale audit in 5 U.S. Cities

• Cannabis retail surveillance is crucial to inform regulations and enforcement. • We examined marketing and regulatory compliance among US cannabis retailers in 2025. • We found youth-appeal marketing, health claim, and discount restriction noncompliance. • There were also compliance gaps with state required warning signage. • Results reinforce the need to strengthen cannabis retail regulations and enforcement. Cannabis retail surveillance is crucial to inform regulations and enforcement efforts. This point-of-sale audit study examined marketing practices and compliance with age verification rules, required signage, and marketing restrictions among 161 cannabis retailers in 5 US cities in states authorizing nonmedical cannabis retail (Los Angeles [LA], California; Las Vegas [LV], Nevada; Denver, Colorado; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington) in summer 2025. Descriptive and bivariate analyses characterized retailers overall and across cities. Overall, 84.5% of retailers requested age verification upon entry (range: Seattle = 43.3% to LV = 100%); 8.1% never verified (range: LV/Denver = 0% to Seattle = 26.7%). All 5 states required pregnancy-related warning postings/brochures, observed in 64.6% (less often in LA = 30.8% and LV = 46.9%). Nevada and Oregon required signage prohibiting on-site consumption, observed in 51.6% overall (LV = 81.3%, Portland = 86.7%). California and Washington required signage indicating negative impacts on children/youth, posted in 42.2% (LA = 20.5%; Seattle = 80.0%). All 5 states restricted youth-oriented packaging, found in 24.2% (more often in Denver = 53.3% and LV = 40.6%). Other targeted populations (based on advertisements/promotions) included veterans/military (12.4%), senior citizens (9.3%), LGBTQ+ (8.7%), and racial/ethnic minorities (7.5%). Colorado, Oregon, and Washington prohibited health claims in advertising, found in 65.8% (Denver = 40.0%, Portland = 40.0%, Seattle = 70.0%). California, Colorado, and Washington restricted outdoor business signage, identified at 36.6% overall (LA = 18.2%, Denver = 7.7%, Seattle = 40.0%). California, Oregon, and Washington restricted discounting, identified in 93.8% (LA = 92.3%, Portland = 96.7%, Seattle = 86.7%). Further, 39.8% promoted online ordering, 33.5% curbside delivery, pick-up, or drive-through options, and 13.7% home delivery. Given compliance-related issues with many regulations (e.g., required signage, prohibitions on youth-oriented marketing, health claims), states’ cannabis retail regulations and enforcement must be strengthened.