Cannabis has never been more popular in the United States, with an overwhelming number of Americans expressing support for legalization, according to the Pew Research Center. With some 37 states having legalized cannabis for medical use, and sixteen for recreational purposes, more Americans than ever are considering growing their own cannabis.
Buoying this surge further is the 2018 Farm Bill, which helped dramatically boost both cannabis and hemp production in the U.S. Now, demand is higher than ever among Americans looking to grow their own. So, where are they turning? Most likely, to the hundreds if not thousands of cannabis seed banks found online, just a Google search away.
Seed banks, for the uninitiated, are repositories that store seeds to maintain and propagate genetic diversity. Cannabis seed banks online thus provide would-be growers with the seeds they need to get started growing cannabis. The problem, however, is that not all of these are reputable, and there is a wide range in overall quality among these vendors. So many options might leave beginning growers understandably scratching their heads.
Well, that’s where we come in! Today, we’re looking at ten of the very best seed banks from which U.S. citizens—at least in states that have legalized growing your own—can order seeds and start producing their very own cannabis.
Top 10 Cannabis Seed Banks To Buy Cannabis Seeds Online
RankBrandBest For1.I Love Growing Marijuana (ILGM)Best overall2.Crop King SeedsBest for global shipping3.MSNL SeedbankBest delivery4.SeedsmanBest seed variety5.Quebec Cannabis SeedsBest for promotional offers6.HerbiesBest for convenience7.Ministry of CannabisBest for dependability8.Seed SupremeBest for crypto9.Amsterdam Marijuana SeedsBest for guaranteed delivery10.Weed Seed ExpressBest “new kid on the block”
Click here to go straight to the reviews.
Ranking Criteria
To some extent, your choice of cannabis seed bank will depend on whether they have the strains that you want to grow. We obviously could not consider that in our rankings, as it varies from person to person. Instead, we focused on the following equally important factors.
Quality of Seeds
Perhaps the most important consideration in our rankings is the quality of the seeds. You need high-quality seeds if you want to maximize your chances of successful germination. High-quality seeds also optimize the quality of your plants, including the buds.
Satisfaction Guarantees
For a seed bank to be considered one of the top options, it needs to have a satisfaction guarantee. Even seed banks with a high quality of seeds will occasionally have lower-quality seeds. The best ones acknowledge that this can happen and take steps to remedy any issues customers have. Of course, a satisfaction guarantee also shows that the seed bank in question has a high level of trust in its products.
Discreet Shipping
Even if cannabis is legal in your state, it may not be in the states your package passes through. And there are still some negative connotations and stigma associated with cannabis. Because of this, we prioritize seed banks that use discreet packaging. Many of the best seed banks not only use discreet packaging but also purposely package it to look like something else, like a DVD case or toy.
Why Trust Us
You should feel comfortable taking our advice when it comes to cannabis seed banks. We’ve helped cannabis growers find reputable seed banks online for years. Over this time, we have reviewed most of the largest and most popular stores, along with many of the smaller ones. We have taken the time to thoroughly compare and contrast each based on the above ranking criteria.
Simply put, our rankings are the result of years of knowledge, experience, and research, along with a careful point-by-point comparison.
Types of Cannabis Seeds
Autoflower
Autoflowering seeds will begin to flower after two or four weeks of growing. Importantly, growers don’t need to change the light schedule to start and continue the flowering phase of growth.
Beginner
This refers to seeds that are easy enough for beginners to grow. They tend to be resistant to mold, powdery mildew, disease, and pests.
CBD Hemp or CBD
These seeds are for plants legally considered hemp. As such, they have less than 0.3% THC. They tend to be higher in CBD, but that is not always the case.
Fast or Fast Flowering Strains
Fast strains, fast flowering strains, or quick strains reach the flowering phase one or two weeks more quickly than other strains.
Feminized
Feminized seeds will only produce female plants. This is important as most growers want female plants due to their buds. Feminized seeds save you the hassle of growing seeds and then going through them and removing the males.
High CBD
These are strains that are particularly high in CBD concentration. What each seed bank considers to be high CBD varies.
High THC
These are strains with higher-than-average concentrations of THC. As with high CBD strains, the definition of high THC depends on the seed bank.
High Yield
High-yield strains produce more buds for every square meter. They let you get the most buds in the smallest amount of space.
Hybrids
Hybrids have genetics that combine indica and sativa strains.
Indica
One of the two main categories of cannabis strains, indicas tend to have full-body effects. The plants tend to be short and stocky, featuring broad, wide, and chunky leaves. They grow more quickly and produce more buds than sativa. They tend to have higher CBD levels without sacrificing THC levels.
Indoor
These seeds excel at growing indoors. They are ideal for anyone looking to grow inside a greenhouse or other space.
Low or Extra-Low THC
These are strains with lower THC levels. Remember that what qualifies as “low” or “extra-low” will vary by seed bank. The THC will typically still be above 0.3%; otherwise, the plant would be hemp.
Mix and Match or Mixed Packs
This refers to when seedbanks sell packages of multiple types of seeds. They are ideal if you want variety in your growing.
Outdoor
These seeds flourish only when grown outdoors, so they are not ideal for indoor growers. You should only consider them if you have ample outdoor growing space.
Photoperiod
Unless otherwise specified, all cannabis seeds are photoperiod, with autoflowering seeds being a notable exception. Photoperiod seeds require you to change the lighting conditions for the seeds to enter and maintain the flowering phase.
Regular
Regular cannabis seeds contrast with feminized seeds. They include both male and female seeds. This means that you have to grow all of the seeds and wait for them to reach the stage where you can tell whether they are male or female. Then, you can remove the males and continue growing the females. You must do so promptly, however, or you risk your female seeds becoming fertilized.
Sativa
Sativa is the other major category of cannabis strains. They tend to deliver a mind high, reducing anxiety or energizing the user. They grow tall and thin, and their leaves are finger-like. They take longer to mature compared to indica and tend to have less CBD and more THC.
1.) I Love Growing Marijuana (ILGM) — Best Overall Seed Bank (*Top Pick*)
There’s a reason that ILGM takes the top spot in not only our review but many others. In addition to fantastic customer service and a wide variety of seeds to choose from, they also provide tons of sales and discounts while educating customers through an extensive library of growing resources.
As far as their seeds, the quality is excellent and, importantly, backed by a germination guarantee. They have a variety of classic cannabis strains as well as some you may have never heard of before. As far as safety, ILGM has an extremely solid reputation and their customer service easily competes with the best out there. In fact, on TrustPilot they have more than 4,000 user reviews with an average rating of 4.8/5.
Considering how reputable ILGM is, coupled with an extensive collection of top-quality seeds, it was not at all difficult to select them for the top spot on our list. The only real downside—and it’s a minor one—with ILGM is that it will cost a pretty penny if you want tracked shipping, as it costs $25 (compared to their standard shipping, which is free).
Pros
Monthly deals and promosExtremely reputable and highly ratedGermination guarantee (money back)Discreet packagingFree standard shippingFeatures all the best-known strainsGrowing resources and 24/7 support
Cons
Delivery with tracking will set you back $25
Seeds Offered
Beginner, High THC, High Yield, CBD Hemp, Autoflower, Indoor, Outdoor, Sativa, Indica
2.) Crop King Seeds — Best for International Customers
Crop King Seeds gets points for its easy-to-use site—some of its competitors still feature clunky sites, which can be unappealing to the modern cannabis grower, skewing younger every year. Crop King Seeds also wins points for being a beginner-friendly site, with germination guides to help you grow (literally!).
With a massive variety of strains, Crop King has received thousands of positive reviews for its seeds, and its reviews are regulated, helping keep out biased or paid reviewers and showing you who are regular customers. Their reviews frequently indicate high germination rates, from 80 to even 100 percent.
To help narrow your choices, use the site’s filters to find what’s best for you. Crop King is also reasonable in terms of shipping, with $10 and $30 for regular and express, respectively, plus free shipping on orders over $300.
Pros
Germination rate of 80 percent or moreSpecial review systemGermination guidesHelpful infographicsFree shipping for larger ($300+) ordersGlobal shipping
Cons
No free shippingOne- to two-week shipping time is among the slowestTargeted to beginners, which might turn off more experienced growers
Seeds Offered
Feminized, Regular, Autoflower, Mix and Match, CBD
3.) MSNL Seedbank — Best For Quickest Delivery
MSNL has been in the game for a long time and is definitely among the most reliable seed banks out there. It also offers one of the fastest processing and shipping times, so if you need seeds right away, MSNL should be at the top of your list.
This reputable seed bank also runs frequent promos, enabling you to save some money (especially over the long haul). Although they have a great range of male and female seeds to order from, MSNL does lose some points due to its lack of a germination guarantee.
One thing that does keep it toward the top of our list is its lightning fast and discreet shipping, which has helped make it one of the most popular seed banks online. Another nice feather in MSNL’s cap is the fact that their seeds have won High Times and Cannabis Cups.
Pros
Fast and discreet shippingLot of promos/freebiesSolid strain variety
Cons
Subpar customer supportNo germination guarantees
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, Regular, High CBD
4.) Seedsman — Best for Selection
Seedsman—true to its name—offers an amazing variety of seeds, many of which are top quality. Whether you’re after feminized seeds, auto-flowering seeds, or rare seed strains, Seedsman will almost certainly have you covered. OG Kush, White Widow, Purple Haze, Girl Scout Cookies—they’ve got all your favorites.
Another nice aspect of Seedsman is they tend to give out a lot of free seeds when buying in bulk. So if that’s you, you’ll reap some additional seeds by going through Seedsman. They also offer worldwide shipping, which makes them a solid option if you’re outside of the U.S.
Although Seedsman is one of our top picks overall, thanks in particular to its extensive seed variety, it does lose some points due to its questionable customer service and somewhat clunky website.
Pros
Worldwide shippingMassive seed varietyFree seeds with bulk purchases
Cons
Subpar customer support
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, Regular, Fast strains
5.) Quebec Cannabis Seeds — Best Deals
Quebec Cannabis Seeds is a great seed bank overall, but particularly if you live in the U.S., as its proximity makes for quick deliveries compared to some other seed banks.
Although Quebec Cannabis Seeds lacks the variety of many of the other seed banks on this list, it helps make up for it in a variety of ways—namely, fast delivery, awesome discounts, and high-quality seeds. They’re an especially good choice if you’re on a budget, as their weekly discounts offer big savings—sometimes up to 50 percent, although often in the still-great 10-25 percent range.
A few other things about this French-Canadian seed bank: It carries a germination guarantee but also has a no-return policy, which seem to kind of cancel each other out, and it also allows for payment in USD—so no need to do any conversions, but be mindful of their 3.8 percent credit card fee.
Pros
Germination guaranteesWeekly discountsFast deliveries to the U.S.
Cons
No return policy
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, Outdoor, CBD, Mixed Packs
6.) Herbies — Best for Convenience
Herbies also makes our list in large part thanks to its site’s convenient layout. It’s really easy to navigate and figuring out what’s discounted and what’s highly rated is a breeze, thanks to their intuitive, color-coded system.
In addition, Herbies also shares many similarities with the other seed banks listed here in that it has a wide range of top-quality seeds. They also have reliably quick processing and shipping, which can be really important when you’re trying to get a grow operation underway quickly.
Thanks to how easy the Herbies site is to navigate, as well as its solid value in terms of variety, quality, and shipping, it easily makes our list of the best overall online seed banks. Unfortunately, like a fair number of seed banks online, its customer support is sorely lacking.
Pros
Easy-to-navigate websiteReliable and fast shippingTop-quality seeds
Cons
Weak customer support
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, Regular, Photoperiod, Fast flowering, High THC, Extra-low THX, High Yield, High CBD, Beginners, Indoor, Outdoor, Indica, Sativa
7.) Ministry of Cannabis — Best for Reliability
Ministry of Cannabis is super reliable, which has helped it gain a lot of happy customers, even though it lacks the number of promos offered by many other seed banks. This seed bank tends to attract serious customers because they have a unique feature: rotating seed stocks.
This attention to the freshness of their seed supply helps make Ministry of Cannabis one of the most reliable seed banks out there. After all, the last thing anyone wants is to get bunk seeds. Another feature that helps them win “best dependability” is their above-average customer support.
Overall, Ministry of Cannabis is a solid choice, even if we’d appreciate seeing more promos offered like many of its competitors. Their fresh supply of seeds is probably why they feel as if they can get away with not having a germination guarantee like many other seed banks.
Pros
Solid varietyFresh seed supplyReliable customer support
Cons
No germination guaranteesFew promos
Seeds Offered
Feminized, Autoflower, CBD
8.) Seed Supreme — Best for Digital Currencies
Seed Supreme is our “best for crypto” pick because not only do they accept cryptocurrency, like many of the other seed banks featured here, but they even have special discounts for Bitcoin. This makes it an appealing choice in particular for Bitcoin holders, as they can save quite a good bit of money.
In terms of the other usual suspects, Seed Supreme does well. They have a good strain variety and, although their customer support is subpar, they do offer loyalty rewards that pay off over time. You might be better off with a different option if you don’t care about paying in crypto (and specifically Bitcoin).
Pros
Discounts (up to 30 percent!) for paying in BitcoinAbove-average strain varietyLoyalty rewards program
Cons
Lacking in customer service
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized
9.) Amsterdam Marijuana Seeds — Best for Prompt Delivery
Amsterdam Marijuana Seeds insists on having top-notch quality. Although it may lack some of the seed variety of its competitors, you’re guaranteed to receive seeds of the highest quality, making it one of the more reliable suppliers for serious growers.
Another aspect that helps it win “best guaranteed delivery” is the fact that customers have claimed that their orders were guaranteed, even in the event that customs confiscated their packages. This helps make up for the fact that Amsterdam Marijuana Seeds has one of the slowest shipping speeds on this list. This stings a little less though if you’re on a tight budget, as shipping is free.
Pros
Free shippingHighest quality seedsGuaranteed orders
Cons
Slow shipping speeds
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, Indoor, Outdoor, High CBD, High THC, Indica, Sativa, Hybrids
10.) Weed Seeds Express — Best New Bank
Every industry has its up and comers and, over time, some of them even manage to supplant the oldest, most well-established companies. Weed Seeds Express might just accomplish this tough feat.
Why? Because they are proving themselves to be one of the most reliable seed banks online, with fast, discreet shipping and a huge variety of high-quality seeds. They also ship worldwide and boast a lot of promos.
The only thing holding back Weed Seeds from claiming one of our top spots is the fact that it’s simply really new to the industry. As long as it continues to do what it’s doing, it will no doubt establish a great reputation and continue to grow (yes, pun intended).
Pros
Frequent promosStealthy worldwide shippingTop-quality seeds
Cons
New on the block
Seeds Offered
Autoflower, Feminized, High CBD
Cannabis Seed Bank FAQ
Q: Is it illegal to buy cannabis seeds in the U.S.?
A: Yes and no. That just depends on where you are! Since each state has their own specific laws, and cannabis has not yet been fully decriminalized/legalized on a federal level (although it’s looking more likely than ever), it depends on your specific state. That said, seed banks usually use an antiquated law to help surmount legal hurdles and conduct their business. This works, in essence, by framing the seeds as either a souvenir or fish bait/bird food. You can see disclaimers about this on their websites.
Q: Which seed banks have the best genetics?
A: The award here goes to the seed banks that have built a great reputation for delivering high-quality seeds: Seedsman, Crop King Seeds, and Amsterdam Marijuana Seeds. These banks, it would seem, test their seeds to ensure that the strains are of the highest quality. Stick to these three if acquiring top-quality seeds is your main preference.
Q: Does it matter how I pay for my seeds?
A: Once again, it depends. Many seed banks actually offer discounts for crypto payments because of the discreet, decentralized nature of how cryptocurrency transactions function. While most accept credit cards, which does offer you some protection through your credit card company, many have a strong preference for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Two that offer discounts for Bitcoin payments are Seed Supreme and I Love Growing Marijuana. With these two, it can definitely add up to solid savings—assuming that Bitcoin doesn’t eventually skyrocket in price one day (clearly this is another factor in the acceptance of Bitcoin by many seed banks).
Q: What’s “stealth shipping” and why should I care?
A: The last thing anyone wants is to have issues with their order in terms of customs/government involvement. As such, it’s nice to order from a seed bank that guarantees discreet shipping. A common method is to include other, inexpensive items with the seeds, such as DVD cases. This helps the package seem less suspicious. Another way to keep a low profile is to resist the urge for expedited delivery or a delivery option that requires your signature.
Q: Which seed banks offer worldwide shipping?
A: Weed Seeds Express, Seedsman, and Crop King Seeds. These will need to be your first choices if you live outside of the U.S.
Tips for Using a Cannabis Seed Bank
Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your seed bank shopping experience:
Browse a number of different sites so that you can take advantage of any special promos that might be going on.Check to make sure that the site has the payment option that you prefer to use (particularly if you are looking to pay via cryptocurrency).Make sure that they ship to your country/state.Check for a “germination guarantee” and, if they don’t have one, investigate their return policies and customer support. You want to make sure that you protect yourself the best you can.
Wrapping Up
We’ve put together this list carefully to ensure that you go about your cannabis seed shopping in a safe way and don’t get ripped off. So, any one of these should do the trick just fine. Ultimately, what it comes down to is your specific preferences—for example, shipping time, location, payment method, reliability, seed variety, etc. Factor these in so that you make the choice that’s best for you.
That said, you can’t really go wrong with one of the most well-established seed banks such as I Love Growing Marijuana or MSNL Seedbank.
No matter what you choose, happy growing!
