Scrappers and stoners, step right up—it’s fight night! Today, we are squaring off a rivalry as old as the Gods themselves…
Indoor vs outdoor weed: which is better?
There are a lot of factors to examine here. There are lot of key differences between outdoor and indoor weed, and the strict winner between these two gladiators isn’t cut and dry.
HOWEVER, equally matched or not, there are some pretty dank contrasts between the two. Especially when examining things like yield, potency, and the high of indoor and outdoor-grown weed.
So whether you’re growing cannabis inside, outside, or just here for the “research”, let there be no more pondering. To master your high, you must know your high.
Whoever said “research” had to be boring? Indoor vs Outdoor Weed… Step right up for the fight of a lifetime!
This is the DEFINITIVE answer.
What’s Better: Indoor or Outdoor Weed?
Indoor vs outdoor weed… Place your bets!
Choosing between these two fighters is not about who’s better. Rather, it’s about how they lay their smackdown. You might already know what cannabis is more broadly, but it’s these finer details that make every plant and strain so unique.
Indoor weed is like an association-backed Olympic-grade boxer. It’s been engineered for competitive supremacy, but take it out of its walled garden and things get dicier. Meanwhile, outdoor weed offers a hit more like the pure and raw power of a thug raised on street brawls.
Outdoor weed provides something natural, bountiful, and perfectly imperfect. You don’t get 100% consistency in your buds. But like picking apples straight off the tree, it’s not about consistency!
Instead, outdoor cannabis plants are sun-grown, free-range, and full of earthy flavors straight from Mother Nature. The plants stretch their roots in real soil and bask in the glory of natural sunlight. This often results in larger, more robust plants, higher yields, and rich terpene profiles as diverse as the global stoner community itself.
Meanwhile, indoor weed does offer that perfection. It’s badonkadonk bud that has been lab-crafted, and precision-engineered for MAXIMUM damage.
When you grow marijuana inside, every aspect is dialed in. The whims of Mother Nature are swapped for perfect lighting cycles in a meticulously controlled environment. The uniqueness of outdoor marijuana is gone, but instead, you get prime potency packing a mean right hook.
There is no actual better when we discuss outdoor weed vs indoor variants. Folks who tell you indoor-grown hydroponic weed is worse for you than natural outdoor bush buds are missing the point. Equally, outdoor weed is not intrinsically bad for you but is just as able to be messed with during its growth cycle as an indoor plant.
It all comes down to the love, care, and skill of the grower.
Before any beginner can learn how to grow weed at home, they need to choose between these two setups. High-quality dank free of any nasty extras can come from both camps, as long as the grower knows what they’re doing.
Some folks dig the all-natural, sun-soaked vibe of outdoor weed (like me!). Others swear by the predictable potency of indoor strains. Really, the only way to find out YOUR preference is to get out there and toke ‘em all!
Oh no. What a shame. Please excuse me while I go do some “research”.
What’s the Difference Between Indoor and Outdoor Weed?
Ok! Forget the hierarchies: let’s talk actual differences.
From size to science, the differences between indoor vs outdoor weed are a very wide scope. Here’s a quick overview of the areas we’ll explore:
Click the link to skip ahead or just keep reading to be as informed as The Weed Prof!
Size
Outdoor weed grows like it’s got something to prove! Outside plants get taller, bushier, and sometimes more like cannabis trees than plants. In the right conditions, some varieties of outdoor marijuana can even grow up to 13 feet tall!
Meanwhile, indoor cannabis generally ends up stubbier and more compact from the lack of natural light and more restricted environs. Indoor plants usually max out around 6 feet. But this means you get dense buds without the massive height.
Yield
Prepare your best bud trimmers! While those indoor buds might be dense, the massive stature of outdoor cannabis plants still offer enormous yield. With plenty of space and sunlight, outdoor plants can produce up to several pounds more of flower per plant.
Indoor plants swap this prolificacy for manageability. Harvests of indoor cannabis more typically land in the few ounces to a pound per plant range. So if you’re strictly examining the yield of indoor vs outdoor weed, outdoors is the way to go!
Trichome Density
Trichomes: the frosty little crystals responsible for your bud’s sticky, sparkling look (and most of its cannabinoids and terpenes too!). This category goes to indoor-grown cannabis without much competition.
Controlled indoor growing environments are EXCELLENT for maximizing trichome production. Outdoor-grown weed, while still potent, usually just can’t achieve that same level of crystal-coated bling.
Color
There’s no clear winner here though! Indoor buds usually go for a more vibrant spectrum—like deep purples and bright greens—because growers can tweak conditions like temperature and light to bring out the best hues.
Outdoor buds, however, have that natural, earthy palette. They often lean towards more muted greens and browns, though those greens can get pretty rich too. In my opinion, the color difference of outdoor vs indoor weed is purely down to preference.
Cannabinoids
However, when comparing THC and CBD, the difference in chemical composition between growing weed outside vs inside is a bit more straightforward to rank. Outdoor weed, soaking in that luscious from full-spectrum sunlight, generally results in a broader cannabinoid profile, boosting CBD levels along with other lesser-known cannabinoids. Conversely, indoor weed tends to have higher THC levels but lower CBD levels due to the controlled growing environments, supporting their punchy potency.
The choice here is more about how you use your weed. CBD is the go-to for therapeutic benefits. THC is for recreational usage and those high-powered Scooby Doobie Doos.
Flavor
Mother Nature blesses outdoor weed with richer and more complex flavor profiles. You get earthy notes. You get piney notes. You get fruity notes…
It’s a regular symphony up in dis garden bed!
Indoor weed, for its controlled growing environments, is more consistent in flavor. But it also lacks the wild, nuanced taste of something au naturale. (It’s also worth noting that the smell of outdoor weed is broader reaching too but less pungent overall, meanwhile, growing weed indoors results in a concentrated one-two-nostril-punch.)
High
And now to the order of business: ranking the high of indoor vs outdoor weed.
Indoor buds often pack more intense punches, courtesy of those higher THC levels. Imagine smoking up in an Amster-brand coffee shop. The high tends to hit you fast and hard, leaving you spinning on potent experiences.
On the other hand, outdoor buds, offer more balanced and diverse highs thanks to their broader cannabinoid profiles. The high of outdoor weed is often more more mellow and longer-lasting experience, more akin to a slow-burning campfire than a rocket launch splattering directly on the surface of Mars.
Personally, as a highly functional stoner, I’m a big fan of outdoor weed in this regard. I like working out, spinning flow toys, hiking, playing musical instruments, and engaging with other activities and hobbies while under the influence, as well as general productivity.
But for pure couch-locked, giggling-at-how-high-I-am-in-the-chips-section madness, indoor is THE bud for you.
The Pros and Cons of Growing Cannabis Indoors vs Outdoors
The above differences lay out the generally expected results in an Indoor vs Outdoor Weed Clash of Titans EVENT. But what about as a grower specifically?
Deciding whether to grow your weed indoors or outdoors is a combination of assessing the preferences above alongside your actual growing space and what is possible. Think about your preferences between indoor and outdoor-grown weed—the yield, the high, the terpene and cannabinoid profiles—and then design a beginner-friendly grow setup built for blossoming bountiful buds with just those features. From there, it’s just lather, harvest, repeat!
Growing weed outside generally offers a cheaper and more straightforward process, resulting in a more as-God-intended, rich-and-robust greenery. Growing dank weed inside often results in higher levels of dankery. You can play God, custom-tinkering weed through more technical processes until you have Olympian-grade buds to harvest.
But growing cannabis isn’t just about the destination… It’s about the journey! There are a few more pros and cons to each process before you join the growing game, so let’s get our hands dirty.
The Advantages of Outdoor-Grown Weed
Dirty and flirty! Get yo’ hands outside and into the soil. Growing bud outside has a swathe of advantages!
- More Cost-Effective. The sun’s free, and so is the rain—outdoor growing means you save dollaridoos on electricity, pricey gear, and lots of other bits and pieces along the way for a significantly cheaper process overall.
- Bigger Yields. Cheaper for more! Outdoor marijuana plants grow bigger and produce higher volumes of harvest
- Natural Flavor and High. Exposure to natural elements often leads to richer, more complex flavor profiles in the final product as well as more mellow but diverse highs.
- Low Maintenance. With Mother Nature at your back, there’s less micromanaging of plants. You also have a higher margin of error for mistakes when growing outdoors.
On the flip side, outdoor growing leaves you at the mercy of the elements. Bad weather, pests, and nosy neighbors can all pose threats to your crop.
You’ve also got to consider the smell of outdoor weed and the conspicuous nature of the plants if you live somewhere where home-growing is less accepted. (Planting low-odor weed strains is a fantastic tip for lower-profile growing overall.)
Plus, growing outdoors usually means you’re limited to just one harvest per year. If instead, you prefer year-round supplies, try the alternative…
The Advantages of Indoor-Grown Weed
Why grow a weed plant outside when you can grow one in your bedroom cupboard? When comparing outdoor vs indoor weed growing, the latter comes with some sweet benefits!
- Environmental Control. You’re the master of your growing domain! Have 100% control over environmental factors like light, temperature, and humidity to build the most bespoke buds.
- Multiple Harvests. And unlike outdoor growing, you can grow pot year-round and get multiple harvests through artificial environments.
- Increased Potency. As discussed, indoor growing leads to higher trichome counts, more THC, and more potent experiences.
- Discreet. And indoor growing is muuuuch more discreet too. In fact, with a fully automated stealth grow box, literally NOBODY needs to know.
But, an indoor weed plant is much like a housepet. It requires constant care and upkeep with ongoing expenses too (and no option for pet insurance either).
Of course, for the freedom and flexibility indoor growing offers, it’s a fair price to pay!
Indoor vs Outdoor Weed: What’s the Final Score?
The definitive answer is a draw! How anticlimactic! 😀
Okkkkk, so a draw is a bit reductionist. Rather, it would be much fairer to say that it’s all about what YOU like.
Growing bud outside is all about diverse, natural splendor. The result is an easier-to-grow product with diverse cannabinoid profiles, nuanced flavors, and a mellower but multi-dimensioned high. Outdoor-grown weed is a versatile fighter.
Growing marijuana inside, meanwhile, is for the boutique and bespoke experience. It’s a higher-maintenance grow, but its lab-engineered potency and rainbow-tinted hues culminate in a mind-bending Purple Haze Punch. Indoor-grown weed is a glass cannon.
(And, honestly, if neither of those sounds right, you could try the semi-artificial, semi-natural environs of greenhouse setups instead!)
So then, which is better, indoor vs outdoor weed?
Personally, I’d say stock up on both! If you’re at all a fan of mixing up your types and methods of cannabis consumption, it never hurts to have a strain for every sesh.
But if there’s one takeaway of all this, it’s that there is no true winner between outdoor and indoor cannabis. Let there be no more squabbling of natural vs artificial. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is the skill and knowledge of the grower.
After all… an iron fist will take you far, but a green thumb will take you much farther.
FAQs About Indoor and Outdoor Weed Growing
You need the right gear, the right environmental settings, and a lotta practice and TLC! If disposable income isn’t an issue, I’d really suggest a complete and out-of-the-box indoor grow system like the VIVOSUN VGrow All-in-One Smart Grow Box to MASSIVELY simplify the learning process. Then, from there, you can just keep getting more technical and more fanatical about your gear and settings!
There’s no direct winner here! When gauging greenhouse vs. indoor weed, indoor buds usually take the crown for potency while your yield will vary between the two systems per your grow setup. After that, it simply comes down to your preferences rather than assessing the quality of greenhouse vs indoor plants.
Everything I’ve said about indoor growing still stands. However, greenhouse processes usually offer a happy medium between the robustness of outdoor-grown cannabis plants and the more controlled and extended growth cycles of indoor ones.
Autoflowering cannabis plants are very versatile and can thrive both indoors and outdoors. When indoors, they’re great for achieving multiple speedy harvests since they don’t rely on light cycles to flower. But outdoors, they’re perfect for growers in unpredictable climates, as they can reach harvest stages before any unexpected bad weather hits.
