To look up an Arizona cannabis license, use AZ Care Check, the state’s free public database at azcarecheck.azdhs.gov. The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) runs the tool and updates it daily, so it is the only official place to confirm that a dispensary, cultivation site, testing lab, or individual cannabis worker is legally authorized to operate in the state.1Arizona Department of Health Services. AZ Care Check
How to Search AZ Care Check
Open azcarecheck.azdhs.gov and pick a category. To verify a business, choose Marijuana Facilities. To verify a person who works at one, choose Marijuana Facility Agents.1Arizona Department of Health Services. AZ Care Check
Within the facilities category you can filter by:
- Facility name
- Street address
- License type and subtype
- Licensing status (active, expired, revoked, and similar)
Click Get Details on any result to pull up the facility’s full licensing history, including any past deficiencies or enforcement actions on file. ADHS describes the database as “primary source verified,” meaning the agency maintains the underlying records itself rather than importing them from anywhere else.1Arizona Department of Health Services. AZ Care Check There is no downloadable roster or alternative list. All verification runs through this one tool.
The ADHS marijuana licensing homepage at azdhs.gov/licensing/marijuana links to AZ Care Check as well, along with statutes and contact information for the licensing bureau.2Arizona Department of Health Services. Marijuana Licensing
What the License Type on a Record Means
Arizona runs two separate cannabis programs, and the license type shown in a lookup result tells you which customers a business can legally serve.
Medical Marijuana Dispensary (MMD)
An MMD license comes from the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act, passed by voters in 2010 as Proposition 203. These dispensaries serve registered qualifying patients and their designated caregivers. Every MMD must operate on a not-for-profit basis under state statute, though ADHS does not require IRS tax-exempt recognition.3Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 36-2806 – Registered Nonprofit Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
Adult Use Marijuana Establishment (AME)
The AME license comes from the Smart and Safe Arizona Act (Proposition 207), effective in 2020. AME licensees can sell to anyone 21 or older.4Arizona Department of Revenue. Adult Use Marijuana The total number of AME licenses is capped at one for every ten licensed pharmacies in the state, and most went to existing MMD holders during an early-application window, with the rest awarded by random selection.5Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 36-2854 – Rules, Licensing, Early Applicants, Fees, Civil Penalty, Legal Actions
Many storefronts hold both an MMD and an AME license and operate as dual-license or co-located facilities. If you are checking whether a business can serve you as an adult-use customer versus a medical patient, look for both entries on the record.
Marijuana Testing Facility
ADHS also licenses the laboratories that perform mandatory safety and potency testing on Arizona cannabis products. These labs appear in AZ Care Check alongside dispensaries and cultivators, so you can verify a testing facility the same way.
Social Equity Licenses
Proposition 207 set aside 26 additional AME licenses for applicants from communities disproportionately affected by prior marijuana enforcement. ADHS distributed them through a digital drawing in April 2022.6Arizona Department of Health Services. Social Equity Campaign These are listed in the database as ordinary AME licenses and carry the same operating authority.
Verifying an Individual Employee
Every owner, employee, and volunteer at a licensed cannabis facility in Arizona must hold a Facility Agent Card issued by ADHS. Getting one requires being at least 21, passing a criminal background check, and submitting either fingerprints or a valid Level 1 fingerprint clearance card.7Legal Information Institute. Arizona Administrative Code R9-18-201 – Initial Application for a Marijuana Facility Agent License
To confirm that a specific person is credentialed, run your search under Marijuana Facility Agents rather than Marijuana Facilities. The result will show the individual’s card status.
Reading Deficiencies and Enforcement Entries
A facility’s detail page shows more than just whether the license is active. It includes deficiencies and enforcement actions that ADHS has recorded against the business over time. Testing history factors in too: Arizona requires cannabis products to pass laboratory analysis for microbial contamination (including salmonella, E. coli, and aspergillus in inhaled products), heavy metals such as arsenic and lead, residual solvents, and pesticide residues, plus potency testing to confirm THC and CBD levels are within 20% of what the label claims. Products that fail must be remediated and retested or destroyed, and for salmonella and high-level mycotoxins no remediation is allowed at all. Repeated failures show up in the compliance record. A clean record is a reasonable proxy for a well-run operation; a record full of deficiencies is a signal worth taking seriously.
What a State License Does Not Tell You
An active AME license in AZ Care Check confirms state authorization, but it does not override local law. Some Arizona cities have banned recreational-only marijuana establishments or marijuana delivery within their limits. If you are checking a license because you plan to open, buy, or partner with a location, confirm the address is allowed under the local jurisdiction’s zoning as well. State law separately prohibits any cannabis facility from operating within 500 feet of a public or private school, childcare facility, or preschool that existed before the application was submitted.8Arizona Legislature. Fact Sheet for S.B. 1105
If a business you are looking for does not appear in AZ Care Check under any status, it is not licensed by the state, and it cannot legally sell cannabis in Arizona.