How the tax works
Montana taxes adult-use cannabis retail sales at 20% and qualifying registered medical cardholder sales at 4%. A county may add up to 3% local cannabis tax to either type. State and county tax use the net retail price after discounts. No general statewide sales tax is added here.
For a $100 sale in Missoula County, the listed 3% adult local rate gives $123 adult-use, while its medical local rate is 0% and the qualifying medical total is $104. Yellowstone County lists 3% for both, giving $123 adult-use or $107 medical. An unknown county shows a $120–$123 adult-use or $104–$107 medical range. These examples cover stores outside resort-tax areas. Whitefish has a separate 3% adult-use resort tax and Big Sky has a separate 4% adult-use resort tax; neither is included. Some counties prohibit adult-use sales, so a tax example does not establish that a store may sell there.
Use a pretax retail price after discounts, excluding separately stated taxes. Tax-inclusive advertised prices must be converted to a pretax price first. Store fees, delivery charges and receipt rounding can change the amount owed; this estimate does not resolve their tax treatment.
Sources and limits
- Montana DOR: cannabis tax rates and county local-option table
- Montana DOR: cardholder information
- Montana DOR: general sales tax
- Whitefish code: resort-tax items including recreational cannabis
- Whitefish code: 3% resort-tax rate
- Big Sky resort tax: 2025 ordinance
- Big Sky resort tax: current 4% rate
Rates and eligibility can change. Check the official sources, your transaction type and location before relying on a checkout estimate. This is general information, not tax or legal advice.