State of Cannabis · Santa Cruz County · 2026
State of Cannabis: Santa Cruz County
We scored every licensed dispensary in Santa Cruz County on how easily customers find it on Google Maps, Google search and ChatGPT. The average graded store scores 67.2 out of 100, and 50% of stores with a website have no menu pages in Google at all.
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What we found
Most Santa Cruz County dispensaries are hard to find online
Summary: As of Nov 4, 2026, the average licensed dispensary in Santa Cruz County scores 67.2 out of 100 on the Heady Findability Score. 50% of stores with a website have no menu pages in Google, 69% have no location page, and 44% don't rank in Google's top 10 for their own name.
50%8 of 16 stores
dispensaries with a website have zero menu product pages in Google's index.
Most menus live on Weedmaps, Dutchie, Meadow and similar platforms, so Google credits the platform, not the store.
Site checks · Santa Cruz County
69%11 of 16 stores
have no page with that location's address and hours on their own website.
That's the page Google and ChatGPT look for when someone asks where to shop nearby.
Site checks · Santa Cruz County
44%7 of 16 stores
don't appear in Google's top 10 for their own name, searched as “[store] dispensary [city]”.
One search per store in this scan. Directories and marketplaces take those spots.
Google search · Santa Cruz County
0%0 of 16 stores
were never named by ChatGPT in 15 answers about dispensaries in their own neighborhood.
8 stores were named in all 15. AI answers are already picking winners.
ChatGPT · Santa Cruz County
0%0 of 16 stores
have no website of their own, only a marketplace listing or nothing at all.
These stores get no grade. We score their Maps and profile results only.
Google Maps · Santa Cruz County
19%3 of 16 stores
are not #1 on Google Maps at their own front door for at least two of three core searches.
Searched at the store's address and four points half a mile out.
Google Maps · Santa Cruz County
Base: 16 stores matched and scored (16 with their own website; website checks use those). Data as of Nov 4, 2026. Maps grids collected 2026-11-04; Google search, ChatGPT and site checks 2026-11-04. Licences: CA DCC list in HeadyOS, 2026-11-04. Scoring: Heady statewide score v2.0.
Grade spread
0 stores earn an A
Most stores sit in the middle: 9 land in the C range (55 to 69 points) and 2 in the D range. Brighter means more findable; an F is a store that's barely lit up online.
Show as a table
| Grade | Score range | Stores | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 85 to 100 | 0 | 0% |
| B | 70 to 84 | 5 | 31% |
| C | 55 to 69 | 9 | 56% |
| D | 40 to 54 | 2 | 13% |
| F | Under 40 | 0 | 0% |
| No website | Not graded | 0 | 0% |
Methodology
How the Heady Findability Score works
Every licensed storefront is scored the same way, out of 100. We only count licensed rivals, so spam listings, unlicensed shops and delivery services don't distort the map results.
Scorer v2.0, locked Oct 9, 2026. Read the full methodology.
| Section | Points | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Local | 43 | Wins Google Maps at its own front door (23) and across a 5x5 grid around the store against licensed rivals only (20). |
| Profile | 5 | Review count, rating, and whether the Google profile links to the store's own website. |
| Search | 27 | Ranks for its own name (12), has 10+ menu product pages Google can index (10), has a store page with address, hours and schema (5). |
| AIO | 15 | How many of 15 ChatGPT answers about the store's neighborhood name this specific location (5 unbranded prompts, 3 runs each). |
| Web | 10 | Menu link in the main navigation, order path of two clicks or fewer, working XML sitemap, correct canonical tags. |
For brands, operators and investors
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- Statewide findings and every live county's tables
- Neighborhood and operator patterns worth acting on
- An update each time the data is refreshed
FAQ
Questions about the report
What is the Heady Findability Score?
It's a 100-point score for how easily customers can find a licensed dispensary on Google Maps, Google search and ChatGPT. Local visibility is worth 43 points, search 27, AI answers 15, website basics 10 and the Google profile 5. Grades run from A (85 and up) to F (under 40).
Which dispensaries are included?
Every retail storefront and microbusiness licence on the California DCC list, scored county by county. Each county report states its exact scope and data dates. Stores in counties without a report are still searchable.
Does a high score mean it's a better dispensary?
No. The score measures how findable a store is online. It says nothing about products, prices, service or compliance.
Why don't you publish every store's score?
We name the stores that earned an A. Every other store's full report goes only to its owner, so the findings help that store fix them instead of handing them to competitors.
How do I get my store's full report?
Search for your store above. We send the full report to the email on your state licence, which proves ownership in one click. If that inbox isn't yours anymore, use your own email and our team will verify you.
I'm a brand, operator or investor. What can I get?
The California report: statewide findings, every live county's tables and the methodology, plus an update each time the data is refreshed.
What if your data about my store is wrong?
Every report has a request-a-correction button. We re-check the store and update the report if we got it wrong.
How often is this updated?
We plan to re-scan quarterly and publish the biggest climbers. Every number shows the date its data was collected.
Want to be on the A list?
We'll walk you through your store's report and the fixes that move your score most. Multi-store operators get every location in one view.