Best Portable Overall
If budget is not an issue, these are the best portable vapes you can buy. They are all made by reputable brands and have a great track record.
Crafty+ | Mighty
The Crafty+ and Mighty represent vaping at its best. Easy maintenance & consistent performance make these the best herb vaporizers of 2020. Crafty+ has improved heat-up time & battery life as well as the addition of "super-boost" mode. Overall both are beasts of a portable.
Best Under $200
You don’t have to spend top dollars to buy a great vape. Vapes in this price range offer great value and often perform as well as more expensive vapes, but have less features such as a smartphone app.
Arizer Solo 2
Super fast heat up, zero maintenance, and a battery that lasts forever. If you vape at home, this is your top choice. Recent price drop (now $187) makes this unbeatable value.
Best Under $100
Vapes in this price range compromise some quality and functionality for a cheaper price tag. If you’re a beginner that just want to give vaping a try, these will work relatively well.
K-Vape Pro
The K-Vape Pro is one of the better budget vapes I’ve tried lately, and I’ve tried a lot, since it seems like a new, affordable vape gets released every day. This one stands out because of its tapered glass mouthpiece that feels good and looks good. If you’re a new vaper on a tight budget, the the K-Vape Pro is a great option.
Dry Herb Buying Guide
What are Dry Herb Vapes?
Dry Herb Vaporizers are compatible with Cannabis Herbs. On this list are the best Dry Herb Vaporizers of this year, in different categories. We posted links to authorized stores and coupon codes where available. We update the list as we test new Dry Herb Vapes.
Things to keep in mind when buying a vaporizer
Picking out the best dry herb vaporizer isn’t easy, especially with so many new vapes coming to the market. The good news for consumers is that thanks to recent technology advancements, weed vaporizers are now more affordable. Once you experience the flavor and convenience of a good portable vaporizer, it’s hard to go back to burning your weed.
Over the past few years, our staff has collectively tested hundreds of weed vaporizers. We formed this list based on our mixed opinions and experience to help you find the best dry herb vaporizers for your needs. This list is updated continuously with new vapes.
Here is what you need to look out for when you make your first—or your next—vaporizer purchase.
Do you own one of these vapes? Let us know what you think in the comments!
1. Price point
Not all vapes are created equal, and typically you can’t compare a $300 vape to a $60 vape. It’s important to keep in mind that vaping is an investment. Vaping is more efficient than smoking, and you may cut your herb use by half.
- The first difference between cheap and expensive vapes is the build quality. High-end vapes use materials such as- aluminum (Pax), glass (Solo 2), or even zirconia (DaVinci IQ). Cheaper vapes will use more plastic and silicone (APX or Lite).
- The second difference will be longevity and lifespan. Since cheaper vapes are made from lower-quality materials, their life will be shorter than a high-end vape. I’ve been using my Solo 2 & Mighty heavily for over three years, and they are as good as new.
- The third thing is the vapor quality. You will get incredibly better flavor and vapor quality with a higher-end vape. The oven, air-path, and mouthpiece are kept pure without anything that can contaminate the flavor.
With all that said, you don’t need to buy a $400 vaporizer to be satisfied. There are plenty of great options under $200. One such example is the Solo 2. It retails for around $187 these days, and it’s the best herb vaporizer for home use. If you’re after value, that is one to grab.
2. Size & Portability
Large vapes have longer battery life. In most cases, the extra size in large vaporizers means a bigger battery that will last for many sessions. Good examples here are the Solo 2 and Mighty, both are larger vapes but can last a long time without a charge. Large vapes also heat up faster and are more sturdy and easy to use. A bigger body will absorb and disperse the heat, keeping the vape cool to touch. Most smaller-size vaporizer (Pax, IQ) can get warm at the end of a session, and even very hot when vaping ovens back to back. If the vape is hot, the vapor is hot – which is terrible for flavor.
Small Vapes are more discreet and portable. Many small size vaporizers (such as Pax 3 and DaVinci IQ) can easily fit in your palm, pocket purse, or wherever. They can be easily concealed and used in public without raising suspicion. The same can not be said about the Solo 2 or Mighty.
When making a decision on which size vape to go for- if you’ll use it mostly at home, go for a bigger vape. If you are on-the-go a lot, go for a smaller vape.
3. Types of Dry Herb Vaporizers
Vaporizers come in many shapes and sizes, but they vary in two different categories- Power Source and Heat Source.
Power source:
- Portable– these are handheld devices that use a battery as the power source.
- Desktop– desktop vapes require an electric plug-in and are typically big and heavy devices that are used in-house.
Heat source / Heating method:
- Conduction– vapes that heat the dry bud using a hot oven that contains the herb.
- Convection– vapes that use a heat source that is located away from the herb. The herb is heated by air being pulled through with each inhale.
4. Cleaning & Maintenance
To keep your vape in top condition, it’ll need some cleaning and maintenance. There are two levels of cleaning sessions you’d need to do regularly:
- Quick cleaning after each session– empty out the herb from the oven, and brush off / blow some air on your vape to remove any residue or used herbs.
- Deep cleaning– every 10-20 sessions, we recommend cleaning the vapor path, oven, and mouthpiece with ISO alcohol. This will ensure longevity and peak performance.
Some vapes are designed in a way that the mouthpiece and oven are on opposite sides(examples- Pax 3, IQ). This means that when cleaning, you’d have to take it apart and clean each of the components separately. And then put it back together. It also means that you can not replace the air-path.
Other vapes are designed in a way that the air-path and mouthpiece are the same components (examples- Solo 2, Mighty/Crafty). This design is much easier to clean and maintain since you have fewer parts to clean- oven and mouthpiece. Another advantage of this design is- with the Mighty/Crafty and Solo 2, you can buy a new mouthpiece for relatively cheap- under $20. And since the mouthpiece is also the vapor-path, it will basically replace 90% of the parts that get dirty, leaving you with an almost brand new vaporizer.
Vapes like the Crafty/Mighty and Solo 2 have a clear advantage here over the Pax 3 and DaVinci IQ.
5. Oven size
Oven size used to be more of an issue but manufactures came up with innovative ways to reduce/ increase oven size. You see, when using a vaporizer, you have to use all the herb you place in the oven- in one session. You can not vape a few hits, let it go, come back an hour later, and vape a few more hits from the same oven. Well technically you could, it’ll just suck.
So current day vapes use oven inserts to reduce oven size– IQ uses glass spacers, Pax 3 uses a half-oven lid, Mighty/Crafty use an oven pad, and new Volcano Hybrid uses an oven reducer. All allow you to choose the oven size and get efficient with your herbs.
Vaping VS Smoking
Unlike your standard joint, dry herb vaporizers are all-electric. They can come in a variety of different sizes, from the easily portable ones that can fit into a pocket to larger ones that are only suitable for home use. And unlike your standard joint, dry herb vaporizers don’t use combustion. Instead, they heat up the herb by passing hot air over it, which creates a vapor that is inhaled by the user.
That is the main reason why dry herb vaporizers are recommended over joints or bongs. The lack of combustion has quite a few benefits, and you quickly learn to appreciate the full flavor of your dry herb.
As far as the “high”, vapers describe the high you get from vaping as “cleaner” and more consistent. Vaping is super potent and the effects are even stronger and faster compared to joints.
Vaping Extracts
Some dry herb vapes also allow the use of THC extracts and Concentrate (examples- Pax 3, Crafty/Mighty). I highly recommend to avoid it. You shouldn’t use extracts in your primary dry herb vape. Extracts will make everything stick and will double your cleaning needs.
You should buy a separate wax vape pen for your extracts. They are not expensive, small, and will work with concentrates better than dry herb vaporizers.
FAQs
You can’t with regular session vaporizers because the oven retains heat even after it has been turned off. So, if you stop a session and then try to reheat the herb left in the oven, it will be dried out and have very little flavor, you would simply be wasting the herb if you try that. However, special on-demand vaporizers allow you to use one bowl over multiple sessions. That is because they heat up and cool down almost instantly, so the herb keeps its flavor and potency over multiple sessions.
The vapor produced by vaporizers does smell like weed, but unlike with joints, the odor dissipates very quickly and does not stick to your hair or fibers in your clothes. That means vaping is a stealthier way to consume marijuana without advertising the fact. This article explains the smell of vaporizers in more details.
Selling vaporizers and vaporizer related products violates Amazon’s terms of service. The reason is that marijuana is still banned on a federal level even though many states have legalized or decriminalized its use. Occasionally a seller will manage to sell vaporizers, but they get shut down when Amazon finds out. The same goes for any big online retailer. It would be a bad idea to buy from them anyway since there is a chance that a vape sold on Amazon is an unsafe knock-off of the real thing. If you are buying online, then only buy from authorized resellers that specialize in vaping related products. Check out our exclusive coupon codes for most major brands.
Yes, because vaporizers use weed more efficiently than joints, or other methods of weed consumption do. Since dry herb vaporizers do not burn the weed, none of it is lost to combustion, so you extract all the flavor and terpenes from the weed. Furthermore, you can even use the vaped weed for other uses if you want.
The high from vaping is stronger than the high from smoking. That is because vaping is more efficient than smoking, so more THC gets absorbed into the bloodstream, making the effects of the weed more potent. The dosage level does not matter, if you use the same amount of weed in a vaporizer and in a joint, then the vaporizer will give you a more potent high.
You should stick to the marijuana plant with vaporizers because you are meant to inhale the vapor it produces. If you use other plant material, then the vapor it produces could have no effect, or it could even be harmful. So, the only dry herb you should use with your vaporizer is marijuana.
Yes. The reason is that vaporizers use the herb more efficiently the finer it is ground up. That is because grinding increases the surface area of the herb which means that it gets heated more evenly. Even heating produces better flavor and more vapor.
You can buy vaporizers from brick and mortar smoke shops or online smoke shops. You should only buy from authorized resellers that specialize in selling vaping products and that offers buyers warranties on all of their products. You can also buy directly from the manufacturer’s website if you want to be absolutely certain of the authenticity of the product.
Using a dry herb vaporizer may be simple or involved depending on the vape. Typically, the process is-
- Prepare & Grind your herb
- Load the Vape
- Turn on, set temperature, and vape.
- End a session & Clean the Vape.
The process is simple and straightforward, but in each step, there are things you can do to improve your experience significantly. Our how to use a vaporizer guide can help you out with the basics, and our advanced guide will show you how to get the most out of your vape.
Dry herb vaporizers usually consist of a power source (battery), a heating element (oven or coil) and a mouthpiece. The battery supplies power and the oven heats the dry herb to a set temperature (usually around 390°F/190°C).
While taking a hit, the air that passes through the airpath and into the mouthpiece picks up THC molecules and then inahled by the user. For more info, read our post about how dry herb vapes work.
Glossary
- Draw Resistance – This term refers to how hard you have to inhale from the mouthpiece of the vaporizer. A low draw resistance means that you do not have to expend much more effort than breathing in. A high draw resistance means that you have to use more force when inhaling and you’ll have to inhale stronger. Low darw resistance is desirable, and it means a more comfortable inhale. Here are 7 tips to help you reduce draw resistance and get more vapor.
- Session – Using an oven full of herb is a session. So, if you vape the contents of an oven, that counts as one session. If you refill the oven and vape again, then that is a second session, and so on. You can continue your sessions until the battery of the vaporizer gives out, which is why batteries are sometimes measured by the number of sessions they can produce before dying. As stated in the FAQ, on-demand vaporizers allow you to have multiple sessions with just a single oven. For more info read our detailed post about session vs on-demand vaporizers.
- Convection – With this heating-method, the herb is not in direct contact with the heating element.
- Conduction – In this heating-method, the herb directly contacts the heating element.
- Oven/Chamber – This is where the herb is placed in the vaporizer. Most vapes have an oven that is made from Stainless Steel or Ceramic. A typical dry herb chamber can contain around 0.2-0.3 grams of dry herb.
- Portable Vaporizer – These are vaporizers that are usually small enough to fit in most pockets, purses, or backpacks, and they have mouthpieces from which to inhale the vapor. They use batteries that eventually need to be recharged or replaced.
- Desktop Vaporizer – These are large vaporizers that are meant to be used in the home. They typically don’t use batteries and are instead plugged directly into a wall outlet. They do not use standard mouthpieces, instead the vapor is inhaled from a tube or an inflatable bag that fills up during vaporization. One example of a Desktop vape is the Volcano Hybrid.
- Wax/Dab – Wax / Dab is one of the products produced from the extraction of marijuana. There are various methods of extraction and they can produce either a semi-soft substance called wax, or a liquid called oil. A dab is a small amount of wax that is placed in a wax vaporizer. Here is what all you need to know about Wax and Dab pens.
- Cashed Oven – This simply means that the herb in the oven has been thoroughly and completely vaped and used up. A cashed oven should be emptied before a fresh batch of herb is placed inside of it. Read our cashed oven guide to know when it’s time to replace the herb.
- Terpenes – These are the oils secreted by glands in the marijuana plant that gives each strain its distinct color, odor, and flavor.
2 Responses
Hi
Hope you have some advice 😀
Your FAQs mention that I will get more out of the weed and higher potency from the weed with a vaporizer. However I just got an Herb-e Micro Dry Herb Vaporizer, and I am experiencing the opposite. I followed the instruction about packing the chamber and about how to inhale. I hardly see any vape when exhaling, which is not a problem unless it is a symptom of me doing something wrong? Do you have any idea where the problems come from? Is it the device or is there something I am missing?
Another thing, how do I know when the session is finished? I am always in doubt if I have gotten the full potential out of the plant when vaping it.
Thanks in advance
Louise
Hi Louise!
I’m not familiar with the specific vape you’re using, but just looking it up online I gathered that a) it’s a $60 vape, probably not the best quality out there and b) it is sold as “the smallest” vape, but that also means “the least powerful”. So your vape may be your first issue.
Still, I’d suggest experimenting with different oven densities and draw techniques.
Just keep in mind that the vapor you get from vaping dry herb is not like smoke. It’s usually much lighter, but the “effects” should still be there.
This post & video can help you get more vapor- https://thevape.guide/get-more-vapor-from-your-weed-vape/
Hope this helps 😉
TVG.