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CBD for stress

Stress is one of the top reasons people use CBD, but trials in healthy adults and stressed groups have mostly found no effect beyond placebo.

Facts checked 13 November 20266 min readHow we research
Not enough evidence

No trial in people with everyday or chronic stress shows a benefit; a 15 mg a day trial and lab studies at 300 to 900 mg mostly found no effect, apart from some single 300 to 600 mg doses in public-speaking tests.

How we grade evidence

CBD is widely marketed for stress, but trials have not shown that it relieves it. In healthy adults, CBD did not change mood or anxiety even at high doses, and a six-week trial of a low dose found no significant effect. Some single-dose studies found less anxiety during a staged public-speaking test, which is a narrow laboratory result.

Stress is the body’s normal response to pressure or threat. It is not a medical diagnosis, so there are no trials of “CBD for stress” in the way there are for epilepsy or insomnia. What exists are laboratory stress tests, small trials in healthy people, and surveys.

What the research shows

Why people use CBD for stress

A 2021 survey of 387 CBD users, mostly in the UK, found the top reasons for use were anxiety (42.6%), sleep problems (42.5%), stress (37%) and general wellbeing (37%). More than half (54%) used less than 50 mg a day. Users said CBD helped, but a survey cannot test whether it did.1

Controlled studies

Study Who CBD dose Result
Arndt and de Wit 2017 38 healthy adults Single doses of 300, 600 and 900 mg, and placebo No dampening of reactions to negative images or social rejection; no change in mood or anxiety2
Lopez 2020 65 overweight but otherwise healthy adults 15 mg a day (in a hemp extract) for 6 weeks No significant difference from placebo on stress or mood measures; “ability to cope with stress” just missed significance3
Appiah-Kusi 2020 32 people at high risk of psychosis, plus 26 healthy comparisons 600 mg a day for 1 week, or placebo Cortisol response to a public-speaking stress test was not different between CBD and placebo. Rises in anxiety fell between those of the placebo group and the healthy group4
Zuardi 1993 11 healthy volunteers Single 300 or 600 mg dose Cortisol fell as usual during the morning on placebo; this fall was smaller after CBD. CBD had a sedative effect5

Cortisol is a hormone the body releases under stress. The 1993 finding is the opposite of the common claim that CBD lowers cortisol, although the study was tiny.5

Public-speaking tests

Researchers often study anxiety by asking people to prepare and give a speech. In a 2011 study, 24 people with social anxiety disorder who took a single 600 mg dose had less anxiety during the speech than those on placebo.6 A later study in 57 healthy men found that 300 mg reduced speech anxiety, while 150 mg and 600 mg did not.7

These results are about short-term anxiety in a staged test, at doses many times higher than most users take. See CBD for anxiety.

The power of expectation

In a 2021 study, 43 healthy adults took a CBD-free hemp seed oil twice. Once they were told it contained CBD, and once that it did not, before a stress test. When they believed they had taken CBD, they felt more sedated and their heart rate variability (beat-to-beat changes in heart rhythm) changed. People who strongly believed CBD reduces anxiety reported less anxiety, even though there was no CBD in the oil.8

This is why personal experience and uncontrolled studies are weak evidence for stress. See how we grade the evidence.

What doses were tested

Studies used 15 mg a day,3 300 to 900 mg as single doses,2567 and 600 mg a day for a week.4 A review by Australian researchers found that benefits of oral CBD “became more clearly evident at doses ≥300 mg”.9 The Australian limit for pharmacist-only (Schedule 3) CBD is 150 mg a day.10 No trial shows that low doses relieve stress. See does low-dose CBD work?.

What Australian medical bodies say

  • RANZCP. The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists says there is insufficient evidence to support medicinal cannabis as a treatment for anxiety and other mental disorders.11
  • RACGP. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners calls the overall evidence for medicinal cannabis “limited and inconclusive” and says it should only be considered after first-line, evidence-based treatments have been exhausted.12

Risks to know about

  • Sleepiness. CBD can cause sleepiness, and it adds to the sedation from alcohol, benzodiazepines and other sedatives.13 Alcohol also raises CBD levels in the blood.13 See CBD and alcohol.
  • Other medicines. CBD blocks liver enzymes that break down many medicines, including some antidepressants.1314 See CBD drug interactions.
  • Product quality. In a US study of 84 CBD products bought online, only about 31% were accurately labelled, and some contained THC.15 Australian prescription products tested by the TGA were mostly close to their labels.16 See is what is on the label in the bottle?.
  • Liver. At 350 to 400 mg a day, 5.6% of healthy adults had large liver enzyme rises within four weeks.17 See CBD and the liver.

If you are considering it

  • If stress is affecting your sleep, work or relationships, talk to your GP. Ask about options with good evidence, including psychological support.
  • If you have ongoing worry or panic, ask whether an anxiety disorder or depression might be involved, as these have established treatments.
  • If you are thinking about CBD, ask what evidence supports it at the dose you have in mind. For stress, there is none as of November 2026.

See talking to your GP about CBD.

Footnotes

  1. Moltke J, Hindocha C. Reasons for cannabidiol use: a cross-sectional study of CBD users, focusing on self-perceived stress, anxiety, and sleep problems. Journal of Cannabis Research, 2021. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33602344/ ↩

  2. Arndt DL, de Wit H. Cannabidiol does not dampen responses to emotional stimuli in healthy adults. Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, 2017. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28861510/ ↩ ↩2

  3. Lopez HL, et al. Effects of hemp extract on markers of wellness, stress resilience, recovery and clinical biomarkers of safety in overweight, but otherwise healthy subjects. Journal of Dietary Supplements, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32456572/ ↩ ↩2

  4. Appiah-Kusi E, et al. Effects of short-term cannabidiol treatment on response to social stress in subjects at clinical high risk of developing psychosis. Psychopharmacology, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31915861/ ↩ ↩2

  5. Zuardi AW, Guimarães FS, Moreira AC. Effect of cannabidiol on plasma prolactin, growth hormone and cortisol in human volunteers. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 1993. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8257923/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  6. Bergamaschi MM, et al. Cannabidiol reduces the anxiety induced by simulated public speaking in treatment-naive social phobia patients. Neuropsychopharmacology, 2011. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21307846/ ↩ ↩2

  7. Linares IM, et al. Cannabidiol presents an inverted U-shaped dose-response curve in a simulated public speaking test, 2019. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6781714/ ↩ ↩2

  8. Spinella TC, et al. Evaluating cannabidiol (CBD) expectancy effects on acute stress and anxiety in healthy adults: a randomized crossover study. Psychopharmacology, 2021. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33813611/ ↩

  9. Arnold JC, McCartney D, Suraev A, McGregor IS. The safety and efficacy of low oral doses of cannabidiol. Clinical and Translational Science, 2023. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36259271/ ↩

  10. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Final decision on down-scheduling of low-dose cannabidiol, 2020. https://tga.gov.au/node/284859 ↩

  11. Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. Updated clinical memorandum: therapeutic use of medicinal cannabis, March 2024. https://ranzcp.org/news-analysis/updated-clinical-memorandum-therapeutic-use-of-medicinal-cannabis ↩

  12. Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. Position statement: use of medicinal cannabis products in Australia (2019 update). https://www.racgp.org.au/advocacy/position-statements/view-all-position-statements/clinical-and-practice-management/medical-cannabis ↩

  13. US National Library of Medicine, DailyMed. Epidiolex (cannabidiol) oral solution prescribing information, revised 2026. https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=8bf27097-4870-43fb-94f0-f3d0871d1eec ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  14. Anderson LL and others. Citalopram and cannabidiol: in vitro and in vivo evidence of pharmacokinetic interactions relevant to the treatment of anxiety disorders in young people. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1097/JCP.0000000000001427 ↩

  15. Bonn-Miller MO, et al. Labeling accuracy of cannabidiol extracts sold online. JAMA, 2017. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2661569 ↩

  16. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Testing of medicinal cannabis products being supplied under the SAS in Australia. https://www.tga.gov.au/resources/publication/tga-laboratory-testing-reports/testing-medicinal-cannabis-products-being-supplied-sas-australia ↩

  17. EurekAlert. News release on Florian et al., cannabidiol and liver enzyme elevations in healthy adults, JAMA Internal Medicine, July 2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1089832 ↩

Common questions

Does CBD help with stress?

There is no good evidence that it does. Controlled studies in healthy adults found that CBD, even at 300 to 900 mg, did not change mood or anxiety, and a six-week trial of 15 mg a day found no significant effect on coping with stress. Some people feel calmer on CBD, but studies show expectation alone can produce that.

Does CBD lower cortisol?

Not in a clear way. In a small 1993 study, cortisol (a stress hormone) fell during the morning as normal on placebo, but that fall was smaller after CBD. In a 2020 study of people at high risk of psychosis, 600 mg a day for a week did not change the cortisol response to a stress test compared with placebo.

Can low-dose CBD help daily stress?

No trial has shown that. Most people in a UK survey used less than 50 mg a day, and a trial of 15 mg a day found no significant difference from placebo. A review by Australian researchers found that benefits of CBD in trials generally became clearer only at doses of 300 mg or more.

Is stress the same as anxiety?

Not quite. Stress is a normal response to pressure, while an anxiety disorder is a diagnosed condition. The evidence for CBD in anxiety disorders is covered on our anxiety page and is also limited.

This page is general information, not medical or legal advice. Laws and evidence change; we show the date we last checked the facts at the top of every page. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.

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