Smoking and vaping are two common ways to consume cannabis, but they work differently.
When you smoke weed, you burn the flower and inhale the resulting smoke. Vaporizers, on the other hand, heat cannabis without intentionally burning it, allowing you to inhale cannabinoids and other compounds as vapour.
These differences affect the taste, smell, efficiency and overall experience. The type of vaporizer you use also matters, since dry herb vaporizers work differently from vape cartridges and disposable pens.
In this article, we'll compare vaporizing and smoking weed, including their effects, potential health risks, costs, and what to consider if you're thinking about switching.
How Does Vaporizing Weed Differ From Smoking It?
Smoking involves combustion. When you light a joint, pipe or bong, the flame and the burning cherry reach temperatures well above what a vaporizer uses. The plant material burns, releasing cannabinoids and terpenes along with smoke, tar and ash.
Vaporizing heats cannabis to a controlled temperature without intentionally igniting it. Dry herb vaporizers typically operate somewhere between about 160 and 220°C (320 and 430°F), which is hot enough to turn cannabinoids and terpenes into vapour but generally below the point where the plant burns. After a session, the material left in the chamber is dry and brown rather than ash.
It's also important to separate two kinds of vaping:
- Dry herb vaporizers heat cannabis flower, so they're the most direct comparison with smoking a joint or bowl.
- Vape cartridges, disposables and dab pens heat cannabis extracts such as distillate, live resin or wax. These are concentrated products, so comparing them with smoking flower isn't a like-for-like comparison.
Most of the differences below apply to both types, but the distinction matters when it comes to effects, potency and health risks.
Vaporizing vs Smoking Weed: Key Differences
Taste and Flavour
Smoke carries a charred, ashy taste, along with flavours from the rolling paper or wrap. Vaporizing can preserve more of the flower's original flavour because it doesn't produce combustion smoke, so the terpenes that give each strain its aroma tend to come through more clearly.
Some people still prefer the stronger, smoky taste of a joint or pipe. Vapour from a dry herb vaporizer can also taste lighter, or toasted towards the end of a session.
Smell
Cannabis smoke has a strong odour that clings to fabric, hair and furniture and can linger for hours. Vapour also smells, but it's usually less intense and dissipates faster. Vaping is more discreet than smoking, but it isn't odourless.
Cannabis Efficiency and Cost
A joint or bowl continues burning between puffs, so some cannabinoids are lost as smoke that's never inhaled. Vaporizers heat a contained amount of material, which generally means less is wasted. Research has found improved THC delivery under some vaporization conditions, although the advantage depends on the device. Some dry herb vaporizers heat only while you draw; others keep the chamber hot for the whole session.
Cost works out differently for each method. Smoking needs little equipment beyond papers, a pipe or a bong. A good dry herb vaporizer has a higher upfront cost but can stretch your flower further over time. Cartridges and disposables have no device cost beyond a battery, but you pay for the extract inside each one.
Effects and Potency
How strong a session feels depends on the cannabinoid content of what you're using, how much you inhale, how efficiently the device delivers it, and how you inhale. Both smoking and vaping act within minutes.
The product matters as much as the method. Vaporizing flower in a dry herb device delivers the same cannabinoids as smoking that flower, often with less waste. Vaping a cartridge or disposable is different: these contain concentrated extracts, often far higher in THC than flower, so a single puff can be considerably stronger than a puff from a joint.
If you're switching from smoking flower to an oil vape, start with one small puff and wait several minutes before deciding whether to have more.
Is Vaporizing Weed Safer Than Smoking?
Smoking cannabis means inhaling smoke produced by combustion. Canadian health guidance notes that cannabis smoke can negatively affect lung and heart health, and long-term smoking can lead to symptoms such as chronic bronchitis.
Vaporizing avoids combustion, and researchers generally believe it produces fewer toxic by-products than smoke. That doesn't make it risk-free:
- Vaping still carries risks. The Canadian Lung Association notes that vaping cannabis can still lead to chronic cough and shortness of breath, and that more research is needed on long-term effects.
- Oil vapes have their own risks. Severe lung injuries have been linked to vaping cannabis oil products, particularly products from unregulated sources. Canadian health guidance notes that legal cannabis vape products in Canada are regulated and assessed for quality and contaminants.
- The long-term evidence is limited. A review in Paediatrics & Child Health notes there's still little evidence comparing the long-term lung effects of smoked and vaporized cannabis.
Dry herb vaporizers and oil cartridges are different products with different ingredients and heating methods, so their risks shouldn't be treated as identical. Whichever you use, choose products from sources you trust and check what's in them.
Different Types of Cannabis Vaporizers
There are three main types of cannabis vaporizers. Dry herb devices and oil vapes are different products, so it helps to know which one you're comparing with smoking.
Dry Herb Vaporizers
Dry herb vaporizers heat ground cannabis flower in a chamber. They're the closest alternative to smoking, because you keep using flower. Many models let you set the temperature. They heat in one of two ways: conduction, where the chamber walls heat the flower directly, or convection, where hot air passes through it.
Vape Cartridges and Disposables
These contain cannabis oil, usually distillate or live resin. Cartridges attach to a reusable battery, most commonly with a 510 thread, while disposables are single, all-in-one devices. There's no grinding or loading, which makes them convenient and portable. Because they contain concentrated extracts, they're typically much stronger per puff than flower.
Dab Pens and Concentrate Vaporizers
Dab pens heat solid or semi-solid concentrates such as wax, shatter or sauce. Like cartridges, they deliver concentrated cannabis and suit experienced users. Our guide to terp sauce vs diamonds explains the main concentrate types.
What to Know Before Switching From Smoking to Vaping
- Decide which type you want. A dry herb vaporizer lets you keep using flower. A cartridge or disposable uses concentrated oil and is more potent.
- Start at a lower temperature on a dry herb vaporizer. Lower temperatures release more of the terpenes that carry flavour, and you can raise it gradually if you want denser vapour.
- Grind to a medium consistency for dry herb devices. Very fine material can clog screens and heat unevenly.
- Start with small amounts, especially with oil vapes. Take one puff and wait several minutes before having more.
- Expect some irritation. Vapour can still irritate the throat and lungs, particularly at higher temperatures.
- Clean your device regularly. Residue builds up in the chamber or mouthpiece and affects flavour and airflow.
Which Option Is Right for You?
Smoking is simple and needs little equipment, and some people prefer its taste and ritual. Vaporizing usually offers more flavour, less lingering smell and less waste, but it needs a device and isn't free of health risks.
If you want to keep using flower, a dry herb vaporizer is the closest alternative to smoking. If convenience matters more, oil cartridges and disposables are easier to carry and use, but they're more concentrated, so start with small amounts.
As an online cannabis dispensary in Canada, we stock oil-based vapes rather than dry herb devices. You can browse vape cartridges and disposables in our vape section, or choose from our flower menu if you're vaporizing or smoking dried cannabis.
