March 23, 2025

A Complete Guide to the Different Types of Cannabis Products

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Shopping for cannabis used to be pretty straightforward. The options were almost exclusively flower or, if you were lucky, hash. Now, there's an ocean of different types of cannabis products to choose from. A spectrum of choices catering to every potency preference, flavor, format, and lifestyle.

With all the types of THC products now available, where do you start? Let's make it easy: Start here!

This is a no-nonsense guide to all the different types of cannabis products you might encounter, with a brief explainer and pros and cons, plus a few suggestions on what to try.

1. Flower

cannabis flower buds in a jar up close with a blurry background

Pros:

Cannabis flower is naturally high in terpenes.
When inhaled, flower produces a rapid onset of effects, often within 15 minutes or less.
Sharing a joint among friends is one of the most classic cannabis experiences there is!
Flower is the closest to nature you’ll get.
There are thousands of different cannabis strains to explore.

Cons:

Smoking or vaping requires additional accessories (vaporizers, pipes, rolling papers, etc.).
Not everyone wants to inhale smoke or vapor as it can be hard on the lungs and cause coughing.
Cannabis flower can have a strong aroma, making it hard to maintain discretion.

What to Know About Flower

In the beginning, there was flower. Cannabis flower, sometimes called bud, is the foundation of all other types of "weed" products. The flowers (especially within the trichomes) are where all the active cannabis compounds live, including aromatic terpenes and potent cannabinoids. Typically dried and cured, flower is traditionally smoked, but these days, it's also vaporized, extracted, infused, and much, much more.

Although there are endless imaginative ways to enjoy cannabis in this unprocessed format, the classic method is to smoke a joint. Learn how to smoke a joint the right way, find a peaceful space, and then enjoy the ride.

Types of Cannabis Flower:

Marijuana flower: Flower from cannabis plants with a delta-9 concentration higher than 0.3% by dry weight.
Delta-8 flower: CBD flower enhanced with delta-8 THC.
THCA Flower: Hemp flower with a 0.3% or lower concentration of delta-9 that contains THCA which converts to THC when combusted.
CBD flower: Rich in CBD, typically from hemp plants.

Try our Delta-8 Moonrocks, infused with delta-8 distillate and CBD-rich kief for an enhanced flower experience.

Bottle of Delta-8 THC dipped CBD buds "Moon Rocks"

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Delta 8 THC Moon Rocks (4g)

5mg D8/Pc

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2. Vapes

Pros:

Cannabis vapes offer a huge variety of potencies, flavors, and concentrate types to fit any lifestyle.
Vaporization delivers more consistent and controllable serving compared to flower.
Vaporized cannabis produces minimal odor, making it a much more discreet consumption method than a joint.
Vaping eliminates smoke for a gentler experience for your lungs.
Most vapes, including many disposable models, feature rechargeable batteries.

Cons

Some vapes lack a pre-heat function, and can get clogged.
There are plenty of places where vaping is forbidden.

What to Know About Vapes

Cannabis vapes come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, but they all work with three basic parts: a battery, a heating element, and cannabis extract. It's pretty simple—the battery powers the heating element, which warms up the cannabis just enough to turn those active compounds into nice vapor clouds. The beauty is you get all the benefits of cannabis without the harsh smoke and burnt plant material that can irritate your lungs.

The most popular types of vapes come in two forms: disposable vaporizers and carts. Disposable vapes are convenient all-in-one devices that include the battery and cart. But as the name suggests, disposable vapes are essentially a one-and-done format. When the chamber is empty, it's time for a new one.

Carts are also disposable but require a separate, non-disposable battery. Both carts and disposable vapes come pre-filled with cannabis extracts in a huge variety of strengths, flavors, and strains.

While every vape brand will work a bit differently, the basic functions are often quite similar. As a starting point, here is how our rechargeable Disposable Vapes work:

Press 5 times for power on
Press 2 times to auto preheat
Hold the button to vape
Press 5 times to power off
Big inhale and enjoy!

Types of Cannabis Vapes

Distillate Vapes: Highly potent products containing upwards of 99% pure distillate.
510 Carts: Disposable carts with a universal 510 threaded connection designed to fit compatible 510 batteries.
Live Resin Vapes: Vapes containing potent and flavorful live resin concentrate.
Dry Herb Vapes: Reusable and often more expensive, these vape devices are designed exclusively for flower.

Try our THCA Liquid Diamond Disposable Vapes in 2g and 5g varieties for strain-specific, long-lasting sessions. Every vape contains ~1,500 or 3,000 puffs!

indica and sativa live resin disposable vapes

Indica + Sativa 5g Live Resin Vape Bundle

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2g Live Resin Vape Trio

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3. Edibles

Pros:

Edibles are incredibly potent because your body converts THC into 11-Hydroxy-THC, which yields stronger effects than smoking or vaping.
Edibles offer consistent cannabinoid ratios, making it easier to find your ideal serving size.
The slow digestion process means the effects last much longer than those of other consumption methods.

Cons:

It's easy to overdo it if you don't wait for the first edible to kick in before taking more, which can lead to an uncomfortable experience.
Your digestive system works on its own schedule, so effects can take anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours to begin. (Hot tip: nano-THC edibles can speed this up!)

What to Know About Edibles:

Edibles are, beyond a doubt, the tastiest cannabis format. Available in a massive array of options, from gummies to drinks to baked goodies, these products are eaten rather than inhaled. Infused with a precise amount of cannabis concentrate, edibles make it easy to get the consistent, predictable effects you are looking for.

Unlike smoking or vaping, where you feel the effects almost immediately, edibles take their time. They need to work through your digestive system and get processed by your liver before the effects kick in.

This slower journey is why we suggest giving yourself at least an hour after eating before expecting to feel anything. The wait is worth it, though, as the experience tends to last longer than with other methods. And again, if you don't like waiting, fast-acting edibles like Double Take are your best bet!

Types of Edibles:

Baked Goods: Classic baked treats like brownies, cereal bites, and more.
Gummies: Gummies infused with cannabis extracts, often available in fun fruit flavors.
Candy: A catch-all for all non-gummy edibles, like Taffy and Sours.

Looking for higher potency edibles? Try our Peak Gummies, each packed with 100 mg of delta-8 or delta-9 THC.

2 bags of Wild Cherry 100mg gummies and 2 bags of Mandarin 100mg Gummies

Mandarin + Wild Cherry - Peak Delta 9 Gummies Duo Pack

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Peak Delta 8 Gummies Flavor Set

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4. Syrups

a mug of hot tea next to a bottle of THC syrup

Pros:

A sweet, delicious way to add a serving of THC to any meal or snack.
Easy to incorporate into any recipe that calls for honey, maple syrup, corn syrup, and more!
Adjusting the serving size (and potency) is simple.

Cons:

For diabetics or those on a ketogenic diet, having your THC in a sugary format is obviously not ideal.
Like other edibles, absorption happens through digestion, meaning effects can take 30 minutes to several hours to kick in (unless you choose Hometown Hero syrups which are fast-acting).

The cannabis-infused syrup is a sweet cannabinoid-rich liquid edible. While it could easily be enjoyed by the spoonful, syrups are usually used as part of a recipe. For example, it can be drizzled onto pancakes, stirred into hot chocolate, or used to dress honey hot chicken wings (find more creative ways to use THC syrup here).

Types of Syrups

There are cannabis syrups on the market that contain Delta-8, THCP, or even CBD. Ours are made simply with water, agave, nano MCT oil, natural flavor, and 120mg of hemp-derived, fast-acting Delta-9 THC in every bottle. Besides cannabinoid content, you'll find varying flavors too, which you can try by purchasing our discounted sampler bundle.

Agave THC Syrup Trio Pack

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5. Tinctures

assortment of cannabis tinctures staged on a table with leaves

Pros:

With a dropper built into the bottle, it is easy to customize serving sizes to fit your needs.
Tinctures come in a wide variety of potencies, flavors, and cannabinoid profiles.
They are a more discrete format compared to inhaled types of cannabis, like flower or vapes.

Cons:

A dropper-style delivery isn't as convenient as an edible one.
Some tinctures may contain alcohol, which can have a rough taste and "burn."

What to Know About Tinctures

Cannabis tinctures sit somewhere between an edible and a format known as a sublingual. Depending on the person and how they choose to enjoy it, a tincture partially absorbs through the mucous lining of the mouth and partially through the stomach (like an edible). This means that the effects from tinctures are two-fold, with a faster onset than a traditional edible but that still maintains the long-lasting effects.

Tinctures are either made with an alcohol base or, like Hometown Hero's tinctures, with a vegan MCT oil. MCT oils are especially effective because cannabinoids, like THC, are hydrophobic molecules. This means they are absorbed best in combination with fats rather than with water.

Types of Cannabis Tinctures:

Full-spectrum tinctures: A fuller-spectrum cannabis extraction, which contains cannabinoids, terpenes, and other compounds for synergetic effects.
CBD tinctures: Widely available CBD-rich tinctures with little to no psychoactive properties. CBD tinctures are frequently also full spectrum.

Delta-8 Tinctures: Tinctures rich in delta-8 THC and typically made from hemp.

Explore our full collection of THC tinctures for fast relief and mellow relaxation.

Delta-8 THC Tincture Trio Pack

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CBDA + CBGA Tincture

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6. Concentrates

Pros:

Concentrates are a highly concentrated form of cannabis that can reach up to 99 percent purity.
There is a diverse spectrum of extracts available, from flavorful live resin to potent THC isolates.
When inhaled, concentrates offered a rapid onset of effects, often within minutes.

Cons:

For those with a lower tolerance, concentrates may be too strong.
Depending on the form it comes in, additional accessories (dab pen) may be required.
Cannabis product descriptions in the concentrate category can be a bit confusing for newcomers.

What to Know About Cannabis Concentrates

Finally, we get to cannabis concentrates. This is the essence of cannabis, the extracted active compounds from cannabis flowers—cannabinoids and terpenes—isolated for maximum potency.

The variety available is unfathomable, ranging from minimally processed options like hash and kief to highly refined products like distillate. But what really sets concentrates apart is their potency, which can reach 99 percent purity depending on extraction and post-processing techniques. As a reminder, concentrates are significantly more powerful than traditional flower, which typically contains 15 to 30% THC.

Although they can be smoked, concentrates are mostly vaped, dabbed, or infused into edibles. Vaping uses lower temperatures, which can help preserve more flavor and effects from a wider spectrum of cannabinoids. When infused into edibles, concentrates allow for precision formulation to create a predictable experience from one gummy to the next.

But what about dabs? A dab is a small amount of concentrate "dabbed" in a dab rig or dab pen. The experience falls somewhere between smoking and vaping. Dabbing has developed its own culture and ritual, just like rolling a joint. The process delivers intense effects from just a tiny amount of product, making it perfect for those very familiar with the effects of THC.

Types of Concentrates:

Cured: Traditional dried and cured flower extracted into concentrate.
Live: Fresh flower flash-frozen after harvest and extracted at sub-zero temperatures to preserve more cannabinoids and terpenes.
Solvent-Based: Extraction using chemicals like butane, hexane, propane, or CO2 to separate compounds, with solvents removed from the final product.
Solventless: Extraction using only elements like heat, pressure, water, and ice.
Distillates and Isolates: Ultra-potent concentrates (up to 99% purity) created through solvent extraction plus additional refinement techniques.

All The Different Types of Cannabis, and Then Some

While we hardly scratched the surface (we didn't even cover topicals or capsules), we hope this guide served as a good starting point for your journey. Ready to explore these types of products for yourself? Discover new flavors, formats, and recipes at Hometown Hero.

All of our products come from federally legal hemp grown right here in Texas, using organic and sustainable practices. From Moonrocks to Liquid Diamond Vapes to THC Syrups and so much more, you'll never get bored with our growing selection of hemp-derived options.

Until next time, keep exploring and Mind Your Mind.

FDA Disclaimer: This information is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional before use.The Food and Drug Administration has not evaluated the statements made regarding these products. The efficacy of these products has not been confirmed by FDA-approved research. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. All information presented here is not meant as a substitute for or alternative to information from health care practitioners. Please consult your healthcare professional about potential interactions or other possible complications before using any product. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requires this notice.