CBD Dosage Guide
The optimal dose of CBD depends on your purpose, body weight and the potency of the oil you’re using.
In this article, we’re going to talk about dosing CBD oil.
What’s the Normal Dose of CBD?
The most common dose of CBD is 20 – 40 mg per dose. Some people take much less (as low as 1 mg), others take much higher (up to 100 mg).
Depending on the strength of the product you’re using, this could be anywhere from a few drops to several milliliters of oil. It could also involve anywhere from 1 – 5 capsules or gummies per dose.
The truth is that the optimal dose of CBD is different for everybody.
It’s common for two people with identical weight to respond very differently to the same dose of CBD. One person may find the ideal dose for them is 30 mg of CBD, while the other responds better to just 10 mg.
The ideal dose of CBD for you depends on a variety of factors, including:
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Your size and weight
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The severity of the condition you’re treating
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Your tolerance to CBD
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Your individual body chemistry
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The potency of the CBD oil, capsules, gummies, or other CBD products you’re using
The best way to find the right dose for your body is to start with a very low dose (2 mg, for example) and increasing by 2-5 mg per dose until you find what works best for you.
CBD dosage according to purpose
1. CBD Dosage For Anxiety
The effective dose of CBD oil for anxiety or chronic stress usually falls on the moderate to heavy range of the spectrum.
However, some people with anxiety disorders find they’re especially sensitive to CBD may only need a small dose.
When using CBD oil to manage anxiety levels, it’s best to start with a mild dose first to see how you respond. If you don’t see any improvement, move up to the moderate dosage next. Most people notice improvement with the moderate or heavy dosage according to their weight.
For best results, take CBD oil first thing in the morning, and repeat around lunch time. Many people will take a mild “booster dose” about 30 to 60 minutes before engaging in activities that trigger their anxiety.
2. CBD Dosage For Pain
The dose of CBD oil for pain can vary significantly. For mild pain, such as low-grade arthritis, mild PMS pain, or low back pain — a mild or moderate dose of CBD oil will usually do the trick.
For more severe pain, nerve pain, or treatment-resistant multiple sclerosis or cancer pain — you’ll likely need to use a heavy dose of CBD oil.
Some people experience the painkilling benefits of CBD oil immediately, others need to take the oil for a few days or weeks before noticing any improvement.
The time it takes to notice improvement depends on the underlying condition that’s causing the pain.
Inflammatory pain, cancer pain, or pain from endometriosis can take a long time — while arthritis pain, digestive pain, muscle pain, and PMS pain usually improve within a few hours of taking CBD oil.
For arthritis or joint pain, you can get faster effects by using a CBD pain cream alongside your CBD oil.
3. CBD Dosage For Sleep
CBD oil has been shown to improve both the quality and duration of sleep — but studies have shown the effective dose of CBD oil for sleep is higher than other conditions. Aim for the heavy dose of CBD oil if the goal is to improve your sleep.
Low doses of CBD (less than 10 mg) can have a stimulating effect, while higher doses (20 mg or higher) are generally much more sedative.
The more CBD oil you use, the stronger the sedative effect.
4. CBD Dosage For Depression
CBD oil is useful for managing symptoms of many mood disorders — including depression.
Finding the right dose of CBD oil for depression can take some trial and error. The underlying processes that cause depression don’t happen overnight, and they won’t disappear overnight either. It can take several weeks or months of steady CBD oil supplementation — along with other lifestyle modifications — before you can expect any real improvement.
It’s best to start with a mild or moderate dosage of CBD oil for a few weeks before graduating to the heavy dose once you understand how CBD affects your body individually.
CBD Dosage Chart by Weight & Strength (in mg)
The optimal dose of CBD depends on the combination of your weight and desired dosage.
For example, a 45 kg person working a desk job is going to need a much smaller dose than a 120kg football player. And someone looking for mild relief from stress or anxiety isn’t going to need a high dose like someone looking to treat persistent pain.
You can use this CBD dosage chart to visualize how the dose of CBD changes according to your body weight and desired strength of effects.
| Weight | Condition Severity | ||
|
Mild Symptoms |
Moderate Symptoms |
Heavy Symptoms |
|
| 100 lbs (45 kg) |
10 mg
|
30 mg
|
60 mg
|
| 125 lbs (57 kg) |
13 mg
|
38 mg
|
75 mg
|
| 150 lbs (68 kg) |
15 mg
|
45 mg
|
90 mg
|
| 175 lbs (79 kg) |
17 mg
|
52 mg
|
105 mg
|
| 200 lbs (91 kg) |
20 mg
|
60 mg
|
120 mg
|
| 225 lbs (102 kg) |
22 mg
|
67 mg
|
135 mg
|
| 250 lbs (113 kg) |
25 mg
|
75 mg
|
150 mg
|
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What CBD Strength Should I Use?
The more CBD you take, the stronger the effects. Some conditions require relatively strong CBD doses to offer any benefit — others may only need a low strength to provide notable results.
Ask yourself, “what am I using CBD oil for?”
This is an important question to ask because it will guide you in the direction of the right dose to take.
Recommended Strength by Condition:
- Anxiety → medium to high strength
- Arthritis → medium to high strength
- Cancer → high strength or pharmaceutical grade
- Chronic pain → medium to high strength
- Colitis & Inflammatory Bowel Disease → medium to high strength
- Epilepsy → high strength or pharmaceutical grade
- General health → low strength
- High blood pressure → medium to high strength
- Migraine headaches → low to high strength
- Muscle recovery → low to medium strength
- Nausea → low to medium strength
- Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) → low to medium strength
- Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) → low to high strength
- Insomnia → medium to high strength
- Weight loss → low to medium strength
The 3 Basic Principles of CBD Dosing
Before you get started, it’s important to understand the 3 basic principles of CBD dosing.
Rule #1: There is no “one-size-fits-all” when it comes to the amount of CBD that you should take. Some users get their desired results from as little as 1 milligram of CBD daily, whereas others find that they need over 100 milligrams per day. Finding your personal “sweet spot” dosage will involve some experimentation and adjustments over time.
Rule #2: Getting the dosage right is critically important to achieving success with CBD. Its importance is often overlooked or understated. Many new users don’t take the time to find their optimal dose and just declare that CBD doesn’t work for them. In reality, it may have worked if they had followed the process to find their optimal dose.
Rule #3: It is typically best to start low and gradually increase the dosage over time until you find your optimal dose where you get the desired results. Less is often more when it comes to CBD dosing. Patience is also essential during the process. While some people get results immediately, it’s more common for it to take several days or even weeks.
Other Dosage Tips for Beginners
- Be sure to shake your bottle of CBD oil well before taking it.
- Place the drops under your tongue and hold it there for at least 30-60 seconds. You want the oil to absorb sublingually into your bloodstream for the highest bioavailability so don't just swallow it.
- Be patient and don’t get discouraged if you don’t get the immediate results that you were hoping for. Many people don’t get measurable results for a couple of weeks. Since CBD compiles in the body over time, be patient for at least 1-2 weeks.
