Vaporizer Smell: Does vaporizing weed leave a smell?

Updated: October 6, 2023

One of the most common questions we get from individuals thinking of switching to vaping is: does vaping leave a smell?.  One of the biggest misconceptions is that vaporizers produce smoke when they in fact produce vapor (who knew?). That tiny detail makes a world of difference, and we will explain exactly why.

Vaporizing cannabis is a science that has been in development for over 20 years and continues to deliver new improvements to its methods; you can keep up with the changes in the vaporization world by reading our post on the latest trends in vaporizing cannabis.

Vaping Odor

Though the landscape has significantly changed in recent years, one of the most important things people continue to look for in a vaporizer is discreetness. The last thing you want is for everyone around to be bothered by the smell of your weed and vaporizer. Vaporization is a much more efficient process that produces less smell than regular combustion methods. In general any vaporizer you buy will be more discreet and smell less than smoking, and significantly so.

Chart showing odor intensity from vaporizer is less than burned herb

Key Takeaways: Does Vaping weed leave a smell?

  • Odor produced by vaporizing weed is generally only 20% of the scent produced by smoking
  • Vaporization, unlike combustion methods, keeps the majority of the vapor either inside of the device or in your mouth and lungs when you draw, so that not only does vaporing marijuana smell less, but also less of the product is out in the air making a smell to begin with.
  • When you exhale, there is still a weed smell, but it is comparable to overcooked popcorn and will be nowhere near as significant or overpowering as the weed smell from any combustion source.

 

How long does the Vaporizer Smell linger?

Because vaporizers don’t burn, not only does vaping THC smell less, the odor does not last as long nor does vaping weed leave a smell on clothes as much as smoking. Smoking, because it is denser and heavier than vapor, will keep the smell around even in a well ventilated area.

Smoke Clock

The biggest factor is that smoking weed produces volatile organic compounds that linger in the air.

On the other hand, if you just leave a window open while vaping weed inside, the smell will be gone in only a few minutes. Even in a poorly ventilated area with windows shut, any smells from vaping weed should be gone in only ten minutes or so, instead of lasting around for hours like smoking. When one is vaping cannabis outdoors in comparison, the smell from your vape will hardly be noticeable at all and will disappear extremely quickly.

  • Vapor is much thinner than smoke
  • It dissipates much more quickly and doesn’t linger
  • It does not attach itself to fabrics and surfaces

 

Try weighing ash as compared to ABV (already been vaped) and you will notice that the ash will weigh much less than the ABV.

ABV after vaping vs Ash After Smoking

Left: ABV after Vaping, Right: Ash after Smoking

That is because the rest of the molecules are stuck on the wall and in the carpet. In some cases apartments have to be completely repainted in order to get rid of the odor. If scent is a major concern for you, for example because you live in a basement apartment, vaporization is the best choice and will guarantee minimal odor generation.

It is also comparable to nicotine consumption – the smell from a nicotine vaporizer will dissipate much quicker than cigarette smoke, which can linger in a room or even outdoors for quite some time after the cigarette has been extinguished.

Proper vaping temperatures for vaporization

Does Vaping weed inside smell less than Smoking?

So when it really comes down to it, does vaping weed smell less than smoking and how does that affect those who prefer to enjoy their cannabis inside?

In a recent survey comparing smoking to vaping, 59% of respondents said that their friends and family allowed them to vape weed indoors, but not smoke.

Does your family allow you to vape indoors?

This shows that the perception of others, even those who are not directly using vaporizers or smoking, seem to agree that vaporizers smell less and are less impactful to others when used indoors.

Furthermore, when vaporizer users were directly asked if they felt vaporizers had any lasting effects indoors, a whopping 80% responded, “No”, that the effects of vaporizing did not linger indoors.

Vaporizer effects indoors

If you’ve ever known someone who smokes, especially cigarettes, then you can attest to how much smoking can effect the inside environment, leaving lasting odors. Even people who frequently burn incense have issues with scents being stuck in the walls of their homes for years.

Vaping cannabis on the other hand doesn’t seem to have the same lasting effect. Vapor does not seem to cling to your clothes, curtains, furniture or stain your walls like smoking does. Personally I have never been inside someone’s house who is a vaporizer user and been able to tell, have you? Leave a comment below!

Smell from Dry Herb Vaporizers

Dry Herb Vaporizer smell is much lower than Desktop Vaporizers because they vaporize at lower temperatures and you are heating less product.  Most portable vaporizers only heat up to 210 degrees Celsius and have a bowl size of under .5 grams.

In the handheld vaporizer category, there are units that generate more odor than others. If you are reading this, chances are that you are interested in dry herb that generate less smell.

Utillian 722 Smell

The Utillian 722 is a convection vaporizer. Convection vaporizers use hot air to generate vapor production. This means when you are not drawing from the Utillian 722 your herbs are not being cooked as quickly.

Because of the nature of convection vaporizers, odor tends to be a bit less from these devices when in operation. They really only admit a strong odor after you have drawn and exhaled.
You can find more information of the Utillian 722 here.

ZEUS Arc GTS Smell

This cannabis vaporizer has a very tight heating chamber. This ensures that there is no vapor escaping when the unit is not being used, lowering the total smell released.

While it vaporizes at relatively high temperatures for a portable vaporizer, the Zeus Arc GTS manages to keep odor low through air-tight manufacturing quality.  We must also mention that the Zeus Arc GTS is a 3rd generation vaporizer, this means that it uses pods as opposed to loose herb, further masking your odor.

Smell from Wax Pens

Wax pens are designed to vaporize concentrates and extracts efficiently. When compared to smoking or even vaporizers in general, wax pens come out on top at creating little to no smell. The reason being they are usually small devices that don’t generate massive amounts of vapor like a desktop unit would.

Wax pens are an amazing alternative to desktop or big e-rigs since they are usually very small and portable. There are three main components that make up any wax pen, the battery, the atomizer or coil, and the mouthpiece.

Does Vaping Cannabis Concentrates Smell?

Concentrates like shatter, wax, and rosin smell different than weed, while they can still be pungent once vaped, the odor is different than smoking and will usually reflect the terpene profile in your extract.

Wax pens are one of the most discreet ways to consume concentrates, they are on-demand devices, meaning they only heat your extracts when the power button is pressed, which helps minimize the smell. There are even some wax pens like the Gammatron that offer a container to place your wax in which also helps in terms of discreetness.

Utillian 5 Smell

The Utillian 5 is a very powerful wax pen that is while bigger than the Utillian 2 is still very discreet and portable. The Utillian 5 wax vaporizer also features an adjustable airflow ring. This will allow you to regulate airflow on their Utillian 5 vape pen by twisting this ring. This is a great way to tighten up a draw if you tend to draw slower and not want to release as much smoke so that the smell does not stay in your area.

Especially if you are outside, when controlling the airflow you will be able to mask your vapor odor without an issue.

 

Utillian 2 Odor

The Utillian 2 is as simple as it gets in the best way when it comes to wax pens. Being a small unit this is perfect for discreet sessions since it leaves little to no smell.

Portable and discreet due to its size and while the vapor tastes great, the draw isn’t large enough to leave a lasting odor for long.

Another important thing is that being that since this is one of the smaller devices mentioned it will also produce the least amount of residue. The cleaner your device is the less smell will linger overall. You can learn the best way to clean your wax pen here.

 

 

Tronian Tautron Odor

The Tautron is a wax pen therefore in comparison to smoking, the smell after a session will linger for no longer than 15 minutes.

With that in mind, the Tronian Tautron doesn’t feature buttons. The Tautron will send the perfect amount of power to the atomizer to vaporize your oil ensuring you don’t burn your oil therefore reducing the amount of time that nasty smell will linger.

 

Smell from E-Rigs

E-rigs are like the desktop equivalent to wax devices, they are more convenient than traditional oil rigs. While some rigs may not be as potent as a desktop unit they can still produce pretty big amounts of vapor, making it quite difficult to hide any sort of smell. Some devices are better at masking the odor they produce but E-Rigs are not intended for outdoor use making it hard to find a place to let the vapor escape.

Core Smell

The Core is a very powerful E-Rig. If you’re looking for a device that will mask the smell of its vapor, this device will not be the best option as the Core is made for bigger and more flavourful sessions.  We can mention though that using the quartz bucket as supposed to the titanium will allow you to get smaller hits with more flavourful vapor. Therefore leaving a little bit less of a smell.

 

Odor from Desktop Vaporizers

When using a desktop vaporizer, the maximum temperature settings are generally higher than portable units. Using a vaporizer at higher temperatures will usually result in more odors that might be bothersome to other individuals around you.

However, there are some desktop vaporizers that generate low odor in this category as well. Here is the ranking of the least smell-generating vaporizers for this category or alternatively you can see check out this list of the best desktop vaporizers and check the most odor-proof from there:

 

Volcano Vaporizer Odor

This unit works only with balloons and the maximum temperature is lower than most stationary vaporizers.

Since the heating chamber is of exceptional quality and about 5 times wider than all other vaporizers, it still delivers dense vapor but at a lower temperature. Lower temperature vapor means less lingering odor.

 

 

Arizer XQ2 Smell

With the Arizer XQ2 you can vaporize or diffuse your favorite aromatics and essential oils right after a vapor session masking the smell quite a bit, though keep in mind the herb smell will linger for a bit so you might want to keep this device close to a window.

Remember you can check out our full list of the best desktop vaporizers for a best rankings list.

 

 

Smell from Oil Pen vaporizers

Oil pens and oil cartridges are probably the most discrete way to vaporize. The smell from an oil pen vaporizer tends to be the least offensive when compared to smoking. Most oils are infused with terpenes which will produce various scents from citrus to flowers.

Because oils tend to be the most refined out of all the various forms of vape-ables, they tend to carry less of the hallmark odor of dry herbs. This makes using an oil pen extremely discreet and easy to consume.

Tronian Tautron Odor

The Tautron is a oil pen therefore in comparison to smoking, the smell after a session will linger for no longer than 15 minutes.

With that in mind, the Tronian Tautron doesn’t feature buttons. The Tautron will send the perfect amount of power to the atomizer to vaporize your oil ensuring you don’t burn your oil therefore reducing the amount of time that nasty smell will linger.

 

 

 

Summary – Can you find a weed vaporizer with no smell?

Unlike smoking, vaporizing has very little scent and moreover less of a lasting effect. That being said, you will be hard pressed to find a weed vaporizer with no smell. Instead focus on choosing a device that minimizes odor as much as possible. Weed vaporizers let you enjoy your flower in the most discreet way possible and with some of the units above you can also ensure that you don’t disturb your roommates or neighbours, or at the very least keep it to a bare minimum.

Vaporizer, Pipe, and Joint in hands

While wax pens and oil vapes may be even more successful in keeping your session discreet, with their smaller footprint and lower vapor output. If you love flower and like to keep it even more discreet, consider a convection vaporizer like the Utillian 722 that will leave a substantial amount less smell anywhere it is used.

We’ve also made some updates on this year’s best dry herb vaporizer rankings so feel free to check that out if you’re looking for the lastest scoop on what to get!

Still on the fence with regards to vaporization? Check out our vapor vs smoke demonstration for a cool sneak peek of the potential effects of both when inhaled!

Thank you very much for reading today’s blog post on Vaporizer Smell. If you have questions about our review or just want to let us know what you think, feel free to drop us a comment below! Thanks for reading and as always, keep vapin’.

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About Author
Avatar for Alex Karakatsanis

Alex is a cannabis enthusiast, long time vaporizer lover, writer and filmmaker. He is also a board and video game nerd with a penchant for hosting a weekly board game night. Partygoers have been heard saying things like “is anyone else going to show up?” and “I don’t think I can make it next week”. He strives to make people laugh at every opportunity and sees cannabis as a helpful tool in doing so.

The reviews and ratings are based on personal and decade-plus of industry experience. Such content is based on the opinion of the Editor/Author. They are solely provided as a basis for research and should be used only as guidance. We encourage thorough research by all visitors to attain the most objective viewpoint before purchasing.