A new report from the United Nations finds that marijuana remains the most widely used illegal drug globally, with over 244 million users.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime’s World Drug Report 2025, approximately 316 million people worldwide—6% of the population aged 15 to 64—used some form of illegal drug in 2023. That marks a sharp rise from 5.2% in 2013. Of those, nearly 8 in 10 used marijuana, which far outpaced the next most common substances: opioids (61 million users), amphetamines (30.7 million), cocaine (25 million), and ecstasy (21 million).
In the report, Ghada Waly, Executive Director of United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. says “Organized drug trafficking groups continue to adapt, exploit global crises, and target vulnerable populations”, adding weight to the argument that legalization could improve the situation by bringing the cannabis market above-ground. This would allow local and federal governments to benefit from legal distribution of cannabis through a taxation system, while ensuring that the products are regulated and being sold by licensed providers who have no known connection to criminal enterprises.
More information on this report can be found here.
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