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With so many different CBD product types and strengths available, shopping for CBD can be challenging. If you feel like you have a million unanswered questions, don’t fret!
Questions like “What CBD strength do I need?” and “ How much CBD should I take each time?” should absolutely be at the center of your decision making process when buying CBD.
Unfortunately, there’s no quick, straightforward answer, rather there’s a variety of factors that may affect how much CBD you should take and which CBD strength is right for you.
Hang tight! We’ll help you learn how to calculate how much CBD you should take down below. But first, let’s discuss the factors that may affect your CBD dosage needs:
Table of Contents
Factors that Affect CBD Dosage
How to Calculate CBD Strength and Dosages
Deciding How Much CBD to Take
Comparing Our CBD Strengths and Products
Before we can discuss how much CBD you should take, you need to understand the various biological, lifestyle, and product dosing factors that may affect your dosing experience.
These factors are highly variable, and the number of different possible outcomes is beyond the scope of this article, so we won't try to cover these variables in depth.
Still the reasons why your CBD dosage may vary are something you should be aware of before you buy and use CBD products for the first time. These factors will also help you understand why CBD may affect you differently than the next person, or why you may need more or less CBD than other users.
There are a variety of unique biological factors that may impact your CBD dosing experience. These factors may include:
CBD interacts with the body's Endocannabinoid System, or a system of checks and balances that impact the brain, nervous system, and immune system. Since each person's Endocannabinoid System is uniquely balanced, each person may need a unique amount of CBD to get the same or similar results.
It’s also important to note that CBD may react with certain medications, so you should double check whether CBD is right for you by discussing possible interactions with your doctor.
The most obvious factor that will affect how much CBD you should take is the potency of the particular product that you buy. That means the specific amount of CBD per volume of the product.
Manufacturers might offer over a variety of different strengths and dosing styles, and the CBD potency may be represented on the label in different ways. Keep in mind that the hemp and CBD industry is still not well regulated, which means that different manufacturers may use a different method to represent the CBD potency on their product labels.
For example, you should pay close attention to whether the potency listed on the label refers to the pure CBD content or the amount of hemp extract as a whole.
In other words, a label that reads "1,000 milligrams" could mean that the bottle contains 1,000 mg of CBD, or it could mean that the bottle contains 1,000 mg of hemp extract. The potency of CBD in hemp extract varies greatly, which makes this an unreliable method for estimating CBD potency.
If a bottle of CBD tincture contains 1,000 mg of hemp extract that only contains 70% CBD, then the bottle will contain only 700 mg of CBD, which can be misleading.
The best way to confirm how much CBD is actually in a product (and whether a product's label is misleading, which could be a bad sign) is to check for the product's third-party lab test results. These test results should reveal accurate product potency information.
The delivery method you choose has less to do with how much CBD you should take and more to do with the amount of CBD you can measure out and take at each time. Still, the delivery method heavily impacts your dosing experience.
For instance, a CBD tincture offers the benefits of being able to measure your CBD dose in tiny, precise increments, which means you can increase and decrease your dose as needed.
However, a CBD edible or CBD softgel often offers a precise, pre-measured dose, which can make it more difficult to increase or decrease your CBD dosage.
Still, edibles and softgels have various benefits, like long lasting effects, portability, and a mess-free dosing experience, especially for people who already know how much CBD they need to take.
Some edibles may offer a bit more leniency when it comes to adjusting your CBD dose. Gummies, for instance, can be easily cut or portioned to help increase or decrease your dose as needed.
Before you can decide how much CBD to take (which we'll discuss more below), you need to understand how to calculate your CBD dosage based on the strength of the CBD product you purchase.
Sometimes this is incredibly straightforward. For instance, a CBD softgel that reads that it contains 30 mg of CBD per capsule (and not 30 mg of hemp extract) is a straightforward 30 mg dose of CBD.
It's not always so easy, however. If you can’t find any straightforward dosage information on your product, try the following:
First, look for the potency information on the label and make sure that the product contains the labeled amount of CBD by checking the test results. If it contains a specified amount of "hemp extract," use the test results to determine how much CBD is actually in each bottle or product.
Some products, like CBD tinctures, may tell you how much CBD is in the entire bottle, and you may have to do some calculations to figure out how much is in a dropper full and in a drop.
For instance, our regular strength Vitality CBD Tincture contains 1500 mg of CBD. (Checking the test results reveals that it actually contains slightly more—our first batch registered at around 1,589 mg per bottle when tested).
Each bottle contains 30 mL, or 1 fluid oz of the tincture oil. That means that we can divide 1500 by 30 to determine how much CBD is in one 1 mL serving. In this case, our regular strength tincture provides 50 mg of CBD per 1 mL dropper.
You can also break this down by the drop. One drop (not one dropper full) is approximately 0.05 mL.That means there are approximately 20 drops in 1 mL. If there is 50 mg in 1 mL, then there is about 2.5 mg in one drop.
Knowing how to do these calculations can be incredibly helpful when you are increasing or decreasing your CBD dosage, regardless of which CBD strength you choose.
Now that you understand how to calculate CBD potency, and how to check the product label against the test results for accuracy, you can calculate how much CBD you should take.
First and foremost, you should discuss your plans to take CBD with your doctor. They should be able to help you determine how much CBD you should take. If your doctor suggests a dosage, stick with that and contact your doctor if you believe your dosage needs to be adjusted.
If your doctor doesn't give specific dosage information (but approved you for CBD use) you may need to do some work to determine how much CBD you should take.
As we mentioned earlier, the amount of CBD you need will vary from the next person based on a variety of biological and lifestyle factors. Unfortunately there is no straightforward dosing scale that gives you an idea how much CBD you may need based on weight or age or any other finite factor.
Instead you may have to use a "low and slow, guess and check process" to determine how much to take. This is the safest method (alongside talking with your doctor, of course) for designing a CBD routine that works for you.
Here's how to do it:
First, determine exactly why you're taking CBD and what you hope to experience, whether it be pain relief, an energy boost, or just general wellness balance. This can help give you a "checklist" of sorts to gauge how well your CBD dose is meeting your needs. Write these down in a journal and keep it for later.
Start your CBD dosing regimen with a small dose. This may be the smallest dose your product selection allows, such as a 25 mg CBD Gummy.You could also start with even smaller doses if it feels more comfortable, but you’ll need a CBD tincture or another low-dose option. Whether you start with 5 mg, 10 mg, or more, just record your starting dose in your journal, as well as when you took it.
Next, record how you feel after your dose. A CBD tincture dose may take up to an hour to take effect, while CBD edibles could take even longer, up to two hours. Every dosing method is absorbed by the body differently, so keep that in mind as you record the results.
Use your records to help you understand if more or less CBD is needed. Every few days, you may decide to increase your dose until you notice effects that match your desired outcome. If you notice that the results are less impactful after increasing your dose, decrease again and maintain that dose.
In general, the “best dose” is the one that makes you feel the most balance and relief without any negative impact. The side effects of CBD are rare and mild, but they are most often connected to taking too much CBD.
Take your dosing journal with you to discuss your experience with your doctor. The information you find in this article should never override any recommendations given by your doctor, as they understand more about your medical history and unique needs.
The information you keep regarding your dosing experience may help your doctor in adjusting your CBD dose when needed, or determining how CBD may be interacting with your usual medications and lifestyle routine.
The information above applies to any CBD product you may buy (although we highly recommend that you do your due diligence and carefully inspect CBD products for quality and transparency first). Still, we wanted to break down the different CBD strengths we have available and touch on how our different CBD product types may meet your needs.
Our Vitality line is at the heart of our CBD collection. This line of CBD products features premium, full-spectrum CBD and a variety of wellness-supporting vitamins.
Our Vitality CBD Multivitamin is a popular choice among customers (offering a pre-portioned 25 mg dose), but the Vitality Tincture offers a great, multifaceted starting point for new users. We offer three strengths, each in either regular or tangerine flavor:
Our Mild Strength Tincture contains 750 mg of CBD, or 25 mg of CBD per one mL dose. This mild dosage makes it easy to measure smaller doses, such as a half milliliter dose at approximately 12.5 milligrams of CBD.
The Regular Strength Tincture is double the strength of the Mild Strength Tincture. At 1500 mg per bottle, you can easily measure one milliliter doses that contain 50 mg of CBD.
The Maximum Strength Tincture follows the same pattern, doubling the potency of the regular strength tincture. At 3,000 milligrams per bottle, you can measure out one milliliter doses that contain 100 mg of CBD.
That’s quite a lot for new users, but at approximately 5 milligrams per drop, it may still be an easy-to-measure dosing option for anyone’s dosing needs. That means you can buy in bulk to save, and still get the precise dose you need—a benefit that’s unique to CBD tinctures.
Still aren’t sure which one’s right for you? Shop our full CBD collection for a range of dosing styles and methods that will easily integrate with your daily wellness routine.
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