How cannabis retail registries differ across Canada
By WheresTheWeedAt editorial · · Based on official government sources
There is no single national list of legal cannabis stores in Canada. Health Canada explains that the provinces and territories decide how cannabis is sold in their own jurisdictions, including who may sell it, where stores may be located and how they must operate. Each one also publishes its own list of legal retailers, and Health Canada links to all 13 of them from one page.
We build this directory from those 13 official lists. Working with them side by side shows how differently they are published. This post explains those differences in plain terms, so you know what an official list can and can’t tell you.
Who publishes each list
The publisher depends on how a province or territory runs cannabis retail. Where private stores are allowed, the list usually comes from the regulator that licenses them. Where the government runs the stores itself, the list is that retailer’s own store locator.
- Regulators of private stores: the AGCO in Ontario, the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) in British Columbia, AGLC in Alberta, SLGA in Saskatchewan, and the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority (LGCA) in Manitoba. Manitoba’s list of retailers is also published by Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries, which supplies the stores.
- Government retailers: the SQDC in Quebec, Cannabis NB in New Brunswick, the NSLC in Nova Scotia, the PEI Cannabis Management Corporation, and the NWT Liquor and Cannabis Commission.
- Other arrangements: in Newfoundland and Labrador, licensed private stores sell in person and the NLC runs online sales and a store locator. Yukon and Nunavut publish their licensed retailers on government websites.
What format the lists come in
No two lists look alike. Among the official sources we use, there is a map service (Ontario), spreadsheet downloads (Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan), store finder pages (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and PEI), a published PDF (Quebec) and plain web pages (Manitoba, Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut).
Format matters because it changes what each list contains. Some include map coordinates, some only a street address. Some list store hours or a phone number, and many don’t. A few include a licence or authorization number. When a list has no coordinates, we place the store from its address, and we mark the pin as approximate if we can only place the town.
What “on the list” means can differ
Lists also differ in which stores they include. Ontario is the clearest example. The AGCO’s map shows stores that are authorized to sell, stores with an application in progress, and stores whose authorization has been cancelled. Only the first group can legally sell, so we use only the “Authorized to Open” layer.
British Columbia’s list includes stores that are licensed but not yet open. We keep those and label them “Licensed (not yet open)” so nobody makes a wasted trip. In provinces where the government runs every store, the store locator is effectively the full list of legal locations.
A government-run store and a licensed private store are both legal in their own province, but they are not the same thing. Our listings show which kind each store is, using the registry’s own description.
How often the lists change
Stores open, move and close all the time, and each publisher updates its list on its own schedule. A list is a snapshot of the day it was published or downloaded. That’s why every store page on this site names its source and the date we last checked it, and why each province page shows when its registry was last refreshed.
If you need to be certain about a store today, check the official list yourself. Links to each one are on our How we verify page.
What this means when you’re looking for a store
- Use the official list for the province or territory you are in, not the one you live in. Rules, and the stores that may sell, depend on where you are.
- Expect different details in different places. Hours and phone numbers may be missing simply because the source doesn’t publish them.
- A store’s name on a sign may not match the operator’s legal name on the list. Check the address too.
- If a store isn’t on any official list, it isn’t a legal retailer. Our guide on how to tell a licensed store covers the signs to look for in person.
In our directory
Sources
Facts in this post were taken from these official sources, checked October 26, 2026.
Related guides
How to tell a licensed cannabis store from an illegal one
Official ways to check that a cannabis store or website is licensed in your province, and the warning signs governments say point to an illegal seller.
How to read a store listing on this site
What each part of a store listing on this directory means: licence details, sources, open-now status, delivery, menus and how sponsored listings are labelled.
Buying cannabis legally in Ontario
Ontario's cannabis rules in plain language: the legal age, where you can buy, OCS and licensed stores, delivery, where you can use it, and driving rules.
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What “licensed retailer” means, province by province
Legal cannabis stores are licensed, permitted, authorized or government-run, depending on where you are. Who can legally sell cannabis in each region.
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Why we list only licensed cannabis stores
Our directory includes only stores on official provincial and territorial lists. Why we chose that, what the law says, and what we leave out on purpose.
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How to report an unlicensed or closed cannabis store
Where to report an unlicensed cannabis store or website in Canada, how to raise a concern about a licensed store, and how to tell us about a closed listing.