Walk the shelf at any dispensary and the same thing happens: your eye jumps to the biggest percentage on the jar, and some part of your brain files it as "how strong this one is." It's the most natural read in the world, and it's the single most common way new shoppers steer themselves wrong. The THC percentage is a real, lab-verified number — but it measures one narrow thing, and it doesn't tell you what you actually want to know, which is *how will this feel and will I like it?* Here's what the number really is, why it's a poor stand-in for strength or quality, and how to shop by the experience you're after instead.

What does the THC percentage actually measure?

It's a concentration: the share of the flower's weight that is THC, expressed as a percent. If a jar reads 22%, that means roughly 22% of that dried flower's weight is THC (usually reported as Total THC, which already accounts for the raw acid form converting when you heat it — we break that down in THCA vs. THC on a Vermont label). That's genuinely useful information. What it is *not* is a rating of how intense, how enjoyable, or how high-quality the product is.

Think of it like alcohol by volume on a bottle. ABV tells you the concentration of alcohol, and it's real — but nobody argues that a higher-proof spirit is automatically a *better* drink, or that it's the right pick for every occasion. A well-made lower-proof drink can be far more enjoyable than a harsh high-proof one. Cannabis works the same way: the percentage is one spec on the sheet, not the headline.

So does a higher percentage mean a stronger high?

Not in a clean, straight-line way — and this is the part that trips people up. All else being equal, more THC by weight does mean more THC per puff. But "all else" is almost never equal, and several things scramble that simple math:

• How much you actually take. One or two smaller inhales of a higher-percentage flower can deliver less THC than a few big pulls of a lower one. The amount you consume usually swamps the difference in the label number.
• Your own tolerance. Someone who consumes regularly and someone brand new can have completely different experiences from the exact same jar. The percentage is fixed; you are the variable. If you're figuring out your own baseline, our tolerance guide is a good read.
• The rest of the plant. Terpenes and minor cannabinoids shape the character of the experience, not just its raw intensity — more on that next.
• The format. The same percentage in flower versus a concentrate versus an edible does not behave the same way at all.

The practical upshot: chasing the highest number is a common beginner move that often leads to a product that's harsher, pricier, or simply not the *kind* of experience you were hoping for. A lot of experienced shoppers deliberately skip right past the top-percentage jars.

Why do two jars at the same percentage feel so different?

Because the percentage only describes the THC — and THC is one piece of a much bigger picture. The parts of the plant that shape *what an experience is actually like* barely show up in that headline number:

• Terpenes — the aromatic compounds behind why one jar smells like pine and citrus and another like fuel or berries. They're a big part of why two products at identical THC can feel like different experiences, and they're the best single thing to shop by once you get the hang of it. Our guide to shopping by terpenes walks through how.
• Minor cannabinoids — CBD, CBG, CBN and others. Even small amounts change the character of a product. A little CBD alongside the THC, for instance, gives a different overall feel than THC on its own.
• The overall balance — the way all of those work together is often called the entourage effect: the idea that the full mix of compounds shapes the experience more than any one number in isolation.

This is exactly why a budtender will often ask what kind of aroma or vibe you're after before they ever mention a percentage. The whole label — terpene profile, cannabinoid mix, and how the flower actually looks and smells — tells you far more than the big number alone. Our how to choose flower guide covers what else to look at.

Does the percentage mean the same thing across formats?

No — and this is where the number gets genuinely misleading if you compare across product types. A flower percentage and a concentrate percentage aren't on the same scale, and edibles aren't measured in a percentage at all:

• Flower and pre-rolls are labeled as a percentage of THC by weight — the classic "big number." This is the number most people picture.
• Vapes and concentrates are far more concentrated by nature, so their percentages run much higher than flower. A high number here is normal for the format and doesn't map onto flower numbers. See our concentrates guide for how those differ.
• Edibles and beverages aren't labeled with a flower-style percentage at all — they're dosed in milligrams of THC per serving. That per-serving number, and how you pace it, matters far more than any percentage. Our edibles dosing guide covers how to approach them.

So comparing a vape's percentage to a flower jar's percentage tells you almost nothing useful. Compare within a format, and even then, treat the number as one input rather than the deciding factor.

How should I actually shop, if not by the number?

Flip the question around. Instead of "what's the highest percentage I can get," start with the experience and setting you have in mind, and let that guide the format and the profile:

1. Start with the occasion. A quiet evening at home, a creative afternoon, something social — the setting points you toward a format and a vibe far better than a number does.
2. Pick the format that fits. Want something simple and familiar? Flower or a pre-roll. Prefer no smoke, in measured doses? An edible or beverage. Want convenience and portability? A vape. The format guide lays out the trade-offs.
3. Then read the label as a whole. Look at the aroma and terpene profile, glance at the minor cannabinoids, and treat the THC number as a rough ceiling — not the reason to buy.
4. Tell the budtender the vibe, not a number. "Something mellow and citrusy for a low-key night" gets you a far better match than "the strongest thing you've got."
5. Start low and go slow, especially with a new product. You can always have a little more; you can't have a little less. This matters most with edibles.

Which Float On products fit shopping this way?

Rather than name specific strains — the Vermont craft jars rotate constantly — shop by format and profile for the experience you want, and read the full label on whatever's in stock:

• Whole flower — the clearest place to compare aroma and terpene profiles, with the classic THC-by-weight number as one data point among several.
• Pre-rolls — the same flower, already ground and rolled; a low-commitment way to try a profile without buying a whole eighth.
• Vapes — convenient and portable; expect higher percentages here because that's normal for the format, and compare vape to vape rather than to flower.
• Edibles and beverages — measured in milligrams per serving, so you shop by dose and pacing rather than a percentage; a friendly on-ramp if you'd rather not inhale anything.

You can browse the live menu to see which Vermont growers and formats are in stock before you visit us in downtown Burlington, or just tell a budtender the vibe you're after and let them translate the labels for you.

What Vermont rules apply when I shop?

The chemistry is universal; the rules are Vermont's. Adult-use cannabis here is for ages 21+, so bring a valid government-issued photo ID — no medical card needed. Vermont caps adult-use flower at 30% THC, with a separate higher ceiling for concentrates, so you won't see flower numbers running away past that line the way unregulated products sometimes claim to. The menu price is the final, all-in price — Vermont's 14% cannabis excise tax and 6% sales tax are already included, so there's no math at the register. Public consumption isn't permitted anywhere in Vermont, so whatever you buy leaves the shop sealed and is for private use at home, and it can't legally cross state lines. Store it cool, dark, and sealed, and well away from kids and pets.