NEW YORK — 5W, an AI communications firm, released its Cannabis AI Visibility Index 2026, a new ranking of the top 25 American cannabis brands by AI citation share across ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. The Index is the latest installment in 5W’s AI Visibility Index Series, the agency’s proprietary research franchise measuring how generative AI engines surface brands in consumer search.
The findings depict the largest single citation reset cannabis has experienced since legalization began. President Trump signed an executive order on December 18, 2025, directing the rescheduling of cannabis to Schedule III. The DOJ and DEA finalized the order on April 23, 2026, placing FDA-approved marijuana products and state-licensed medical marijuana into Schedule III. A broader rescheduling hearing is scheduled for June 29 through July 15, 2026.
5W ran more than 50 consumer-intent prompts through the major AI platforms in Q1 2026, tracking citations across five sub-categories: U.S. multi-state operators (MSOs), branded cannabis consumer products, CBD-specific brands, dispensary aggregators and tech, and ancillary services.
Top findings
- Curaleaf, Trulieve, and Green Thumb Industries together captured an estimated 17.5% of all cannabis-category AI citations — the dominant MSO citation tier.
- Cookies leads all branded consumer cannabis products by a wide margin, with a citation gap to second place wider than the gap between Curaleaf and Trulieve at the MSO tier.
- Charlotte’s Web has held the #1 CBD position for five years and the moat is widening.
- Leafly and Weedmaps each capture more aggregator citations than every individual MSO except Curaleaf.
- Approximately 28% of cannabis prompts produced AI engine refusals, hedges, or prominent disclaimers — substantially higher than any other category 5W has measured.
- The state-specific content multiplier in cannabis is approximately 2.8x — the largest signal effect 5W has measured in any tracked consumer category.
Top 15 brands by estimated cannabis AI citation share (Q1 2026)
- Curaleaf — 7.5%
- Trulieve — 6.5%
- Cookies — 5.5%
- Leafly — 5.0%
- Charlotte’s Web — 4.5%
- Green Thumb Industries — 3.5%
- Weedmaps — 3.5%
- Wyld — 3.0%
- Stiiizy — 3.0%
- Kiva Confections — 2.5%
- Cresco Labs — 2.5%
- Verano Holdings — 2.5%
- Cann — 2.0%
- Cornbread Hemp — 2.0%
- PAX Labs — 2.0%
The full Cannabis AI Visibility Index 2026 — including the complete Top 25 ranking, methodology, sub-category analyses, and the Cannabis GEO Playbook — is available on 5WPR.com.
