How Much is a Gram of Cocaine? Cocaine Street Prices

What Does a Gram of Coke Look Like?

Cocaine has a reputation as a “rich man’s drug.” how much does a gram of cocaine cost? At approximately $60 per gram of cocaine, it is one of the most expensive party drugs. However, 1.5 million Americans are regular users. Each year, Americans spend a shocking $37 billion on cocaine as reported by the Office of National Drug Control Policy. This does not compare to the costs of hospital visits and medical care. In 2011, there were over 500,000 emergency room visits due to cocaine use.

Cocaine generally looks like a nondescript powder that easily conceals other substances. Most people are familiar with cocaine as the stereotypical white powder. Cocaine characteristics can vary and differ depending on what type of cocaine it is, and the refining process. In any shape or form, cocaine is a powerful stimulant drug that puts lives at risk. Cocaine use of any nature can develop into severe cocaine addiction and chemical dependence on other drugs.

What does a gram of cocaine look like? Cocaine is generally a fine, dry powder. It is never damp or coarse unless it was very poorly processed and improperly refined when it was manufactured. Freebase cocaine or crack, which is a result of adding baking soda, ammonia, or another type of solvent to cocaine hydrochloride, is a hard, flaky substance that resembles small rocks.

How is Cocaine Made?

How many coca leaves to make 1 gram of coke? An average of 400 kg of coca leaves are used to produce 1 kg of coca paste and 0.5 kg of cocaine hydrochloride. Cocaine is derived from coca leaves, most commonly grown in Central and South America. The leaves are chemically treated and processed to be turned into the powdered white substance sold as cocaine. However, the cocaine purchased by end users on the street often contains a variety of other harmful substances that they may not be aware of, and as little as 20% pure cocaine.

In addition to substances added to stretch out the quantity of cocaine, some substances are added to change the psychoactive effects the drug gives. Most dealers do this in order to get an edge on competitors among their clients, adding other addictive drugs in order to make them more popular with users. This not only leads to higher rates of dependence and addiction but also to an increased risk of health complications and overdose. 

What are the Drugs Added to Cocaine?

In addition to substances added to stretch out the quantity of cocaine, some substances are added to change the psychoactive effects cocaine gives. Most dealers do this to get an edge on competitors among their clients, adding other addictive drugs to make them more popular with users. Unfortunately, this leads to higher rates of dependence and addiction and an increased risk of health complications and overdose. 

Common drugs added to cocaine:

• Cheaper stimulants – caffeine, Concerta, and Adderall are often combined with cocaine as they are more affordable and provide similar, if milder, effects.
• Amphetamines – crystal meth and meth are sometimes cut into powdered cocaine to boost the psychostimulant effects and cause user dependence.
• Synthetic cathinones – Bath salts and Flakka have a base of synthetic cathinones that can cause intense stimulant effects and induce psychosis in some users.
• Benzos – Benzodiazepines such as Valium and Xanax have been found in traces of cocaine as they replicate feelings of numbness found in pure cocaine. 
• Numbing agents/local anesthetics – Pure cocaine causes numbing to the nose, mouth, and throat, and heavy users will often notice if cocaine has been heavily cut if numbness doesn’t occur. Drug dealers will often add Novocain, lidocaine, tetracaine, and other local anesthetics in order to trick experienced users.
• Opioids – Opioids are sometimes added to cocaine as their CNS depressant properties can create a unique high in combination with stimulants. The most common opioid found in cocaine today is fentanyl, an incredibly dangerous synthetic opioid that is responsible for most drug-related overdose deaths in the US today.

These combinations can also are sometimes sold as different types of cocaine, some of which can cost more than normal cocaine and are almost always more harmful.

5.2 million

Among people aged 12 or older, 1.9% (or about 5.2 million people) reported using cocaine in 2020.

Source: NIH

19,447

In 2020, approximately 19,447 people died from an overdose involving cocaine.

Source: NIH

How Much is an Eight Ball of Coke?

How many grams are in an 8-ball of cocaine? An 8-ball of cocaine, or other drugs such as meth, is a weight measurement of the substance equal to 3.5 grams, or an 8th of an ounce. Most reports suggest that an 8-ball of cocaine will cost between $120 and $300. Selling drugs such as cocaine, crack, and heroin in 8-ball weights has been popular since the 1970s as many drug users will prefer to have larger quantities of the drug, and most dealers will offer a special price for 8-balls. 

What Affects the Price of a Gram of Cocaine?

Like with all illicit substances, there are a variety of factors that affect the cost of cocaine. The main areas that change cocaine costs are:

Type of Cocaine

There are two types of cocaine sold on the illicit drug market: powder cocaine and crack cocaine. Powder cocaine (also called cocaine hydrochloride) is a white powder that can be snorted or injected.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), powder cocaine costs about $93 per gram and $28,000 per kilogram. What is the street value of 1 kilo of cocaine? One kilogram (or kilo) equals about 1,000 grams.

Crack cocaine is a shiny, rock-like substance that can be smoked in a glass pipe. It’s made by mixing powder cocaine with water and baking soda. Its effects start and end more quickly than the effects of powder cocaine. The average price of crack cocaine is about $60 per gram.

What are the Different Types of Cocaine?

Cocaine comes from the leaves of the coca bush (Erythroxylum coca), the main ingredient in cocaine. The leaf extract is processed to produce three different types of cocaine:

• Cocaine hydrochloride: a fine white powder with a bitter, numbing taste. Cocaine hydrochloride is often mixed, or ‘cut’, with other substances such as lidocaine, talcum powder or sugar to dilute it before being sold.
• Freebase: a white powder that is purer than cocaine hydrochloride. Freebase cocaine has a higher level of lipid solubility, and because of this, it enters the bloodstream and brain much faster than other forms of the drug. As a result, the high is faster than snorting cocaine, and it’s similar or sometimes faster than injecting it. Most individuals also feel that the high from freebase cocaine is more intense.
• Crack: crystals ranging from white or cream to transparent with a pink or yellow hue. It may contain impurities. Crack is the crystalline solid form of cocaine that has grown in popularity in the last few decades. The name crack cocaine came from the crackling sound the rock makes when it’s being heated. It is created using baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and water instead of ammonia to remove hydrochloride from cocaine. Like the freebase cocaine, it is then heated and smoked. The potency of cocaine, a lot of times users receives a form of the drug that they think is pure cocaine but is in fact combined with other dangerous substances, such as fentanyl or synthetic opioids.

What Is Freebasing Cocaine?

Freebase cocaine isolates the substance from additives. This then results in an almost entirely pure form of cocaine. Cocaine in its purest form is potent and highly addictive. There are detrimental health effects regarding freebase cocaine, as well as an even higher risk for a drug overdose. 

Freebase cocaine is also a solid form of the drug. In other words – it’s base form. In these cases, cocaine is smoked as a solid which is labeled as crack cocaine. “Freebasing,” allows users to experience the drug in its purest form, resulting in life-threatening effects.

Since freebase cocaine is absorbed through the membranes of the lungs, it enters the bloodstream and the brain within 10-15 seconds. Once it reaches the brain, there is an intense feeling of euphoria followed by an extreme high lasting about 30 minutes. The process required to make freebase cocaine can be very dangerous. In addition to damage to several organs, including the heart and lungs, smoking freebase cocaine poses a high risk of addiction and overdose.

Dual Diagnosis Treatment

Drug abuse and mental health disorders often co-occur. Traumatic experiences can often result in mental health disorders and substance abuse. Dual-diagnosis rehabilitation treats both of these issues together. The best approach for the treatment of dual diagnosis is an integrated system. This strategy treats both the substance abuse problem and the mental disorder simultaneously. Regardless of which diagnosis (mental health or substance abuse problem) came first, long-term recovery will depend mainly on the treatment for both diseases done by the same team or provider.

Please, do not try to detox on your own. The detox process can be painful and difficult without medical assistance. However, getting through the detox process is crucial for continued treatment. We Level Up provide proper care with round-the-clock medical staff to assist your recovery through our opioid addiction treatment program medically. So, reclaim your life, and call us to speak with one of our treatment specialists. Our counselors know what you are going through and will answer any of your questions.

Cocaine Rehab Near Me

Cocaine addiction is a condition that can cause major health problems, such as an overdose. We Level Up NJ rehab treatment & detox center can provide you, or someone you love, the tools to recover from this with professional and safe treatment. Feel free to call us to speak with one of our counselors. We can inform you about this condition and clarify issues like withdrawal symptoms. Our specialists know what you are going through. Please know that each call is private and confidential.