Marijuana use among U.S. high school students has fallen to the lowest level recorded in more than three decades of federal surveys, according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that 12.9% of high school students reported using marijuana at least once during the previous 30 days, down from 17% in 2023.
The recent figure represents a decline of about 24% in just two years and is the lowest recorded since the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey began collecting comparable data in 1991.
The longer-term decline is even larger. In 2011, 23.1% of high school students reported current marijuana use, meaning the rate has fallen by about 44% over the past 14 years.
Federal data show current marijuana use stood at 20.8% in 2009, 23.1% in 2011, 23.4% in 2013, 21.7% in 2015, 19.8% in 2017, 21.7% in 2019 and 15.8% in 2021 before reaching 17% in 2023 and 12.9% in 2025.
The latest rate is also below the 14.7% recorded in 1991, which had previously been the lowest level in the survey’s history. Marijuana use rose substantially during the 1990s, reaching 26.7% in 1999 before generally trending downward over the following decades.
CDC defines current marijuana use as using marijuana one or more times during the 30 days before taking the survey. The 2025 questionnaire specifically told students not to count CBD-only or hemp products.
The findings come from the CDC’s national Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which is conducted every two years among a nationally representative sample of students in grades nine through 12 at public and private schools across the United States.
For the 2025 survey, 230 schools were sampled, with 108 participating. Of 16,418 sampled students, 11,097 submitted questionnaires and 10,710 questionnaires were usable after data editing. CDC applies weighting to the results to account for nonresponse and the survey’s sampling design.
The CDC [released the full 2025 dataset and supporting materials](https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2026/cdc-data-show-encouraging-progress-in-youth-health.html) on September 21.
The latest numbers extend a broader decline in youth marijuana use documented in previous federal surveys even as more states have legalized marijuana for adults. In 2011, when the current-use rate was 23.1%, no state had yet legalized recreational marijuana. Colorado and Washington became the first to do so in 2012.
Today, 24 states have laws allowing recreational marijuana use by adults.
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey has collected national data on high school students since 1991 and is used by federal, state and local officials to track changes in substance use and other health-related behaviors among adolescents.
