Can you get magic mushrooms legally anywhere in California?
Not inside California: psilocybin is illegal under state and federal law, and no city resolution changes that. The legal routes we found are a registered clinical trial or a supervised session in Oregon or Colorado, with New Mexico's medical program still being set up.
On this page
What legal routes does a Californian have right now?
Inside the state, only research. Psilocybin is Schedule I under California's Health and Safety Code 11054 and federal law,12 so the table covers every route we could document as of October 21, 2026. Distances are approximate road miles from downtown San Diego, from our own calculation with the OSRM router on OpenStreetMap data.
| Route | Legal status | Who qualifies | Travel from San Diego | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered clinical trial | Legal in a study |
People who pass a study's screening. UC San Diego lists one open psilocybin study, on burnout in UC San Diego physicians, for eligible people ages 21 to 70.6 |
Local. By our count of ClinicalTrials.gov records on October 21, 2026, 6 psychedelic trials (psilocybin, LSD, methylone and related drugs) list a San Diego County site and a recruiting status.5 |
You take what the protocol assigns, and registry statuses can lag. Our San Diego clinical trials directory lists each study. |
| Oregon licensed service center | Legal (regulated) |
Adults 21 and older. "Clients do not need to live in Oregon." A preparation session with a licensed facilitator comes first.7 |
About 800 miles to Ashland, the nearest city with a licensed center we could confirm. |
|
| Colorado licensed healing center | Legal (regulated) |
Participants 21 and older. The state's definition of a participant sets no residency rule.10 |
About 800 miles to Durango, where the state's healing center map shows a licensed center, and about 1,080 miles to Denver.9 |
|
| New Mexico Medical Psilocybin Program | Pending |
About 810 miles to Albuquerque. |
||
| An FDA-approved psilocybin medicine | Not approved |
Depends on the label. Compass Pathways' COMP360 was studied in treatment-resistant depression. |
Not applicable yet. |
None is approved. On August 5, 2026, Compass said its final application was "on track for Q4," with launch expected in the first half of 2027, "subject to FDA approval" and after DEA rescheduling.13 We found no later filing saying it's complete. |
| Right to Try | Not open |
Not defined for psychedelics yet. |
Not applicable. |
What these routes cost, and the legal ketamine and esketamine options that aren't psilocybin, are in our psychedelic therapy cost table.
What looks like legal access but isn't?
Each of these gets pitched as a way around the law. None is.
| What it is | What people assume | What the law and the record say |
|---|---|---|
| City "decriminalization" resolutions | Mushrooms are legal in those cities. | They set local police priorities. Coverage of Nevada City's 2026 resolution says it "does not legalize or decriminalize," and the city's police chief said entheogens remain illegal under state and federal law.20 |
| Smoke shops and "mushroom" candy | Store-bought gummies and bars are legal psilocybin. | Selling psilocybin is a felony (see our penalties by statute), and labels can be wrong: in a joint case with the San Diego County Sheriff, the state health department found PolkaDot bars sold online and in smoke shops contained "an additional synthetic psychoactive drug."14 See what's in mushroom gummies. |
| Online shops, delivery and mail order | Ordering online, or from a legal state, is legal. | Oregon's program bars taking products off-site.7 Where distribution is unlawful under federal law, USPS says mailing the substance is also unlawful under 18 USC 1716.15 See who's liable in a delivery and our check of San Diego listings. |
| "Churches" | A religious group can legally use or supply psilocybin. | A federal exemption has to come from DEA's petition process. GAO found that none of the 24 petitions DEA received from fiscal 2016 through January 2024 had been granted; 6 involved psilocybin.16 A church label on a website doesn't create an exemption. |
| Mexico | Baja is a legal place to get it. | Mexico's General Health Law lists psilocybin among psychotropics with "little or no therapeutic value" (our translation) and leaves it out of the personal-use table.17 Bringing any back means carrying a Schedule I drug into California and the US.12 |
Which California cities have deprioritized psilocybin?
Seven, by our count of city records and trackers as of October 21, 2026. Each sets local police priorities. None changes state law, which still applies inside these cities.
| City | Date and body | What it actually does | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland | June 4, 2019, City Council (Resolution 87731 C.M.S.) |
Investigating and arresting adults for planting, buying, possessing, transporting or distributing entheogenic plants is to be "amongst the lowest law enforcement priority." No city funds for enforcement. |
|
| Santa Cruz | January 28, 2020, City Council, unanimous |
Low priority for adults 21+ who "have, use or cultivate" entheogenic plants and fungi. Sales aren't covered, and cases involving minors still "require appropriate investigation." |
Santa Cruz Local report (we didn't locate the resolution text) |
| Arcata | October 6, 2021, City Council (Resolution 212-17) |
For adults 21+, entheogenic plant and fungi cases "shall not be a public safety priority." Excludes commercial sales and manufacturing, minors, schools, DUI and CSU property. |
|
| San Francisco | September 6, 2022, Board of Supervisors (Resolution 379-22) |
Urges that adult use be "amongst the lowest law enforcement priority" and that "City resources not be used" to enforce. |
|
| Berkeley | July 11, 2023, City Council (Item 35), unanimous |
De-emphasizes enforcement for personal possession and personal-use growing of plant- and fungus-based psychedelics. Excludes peyote, synthetics, sharing and distribution. |
|
| Eureka | October 17, 2023, City Council, unanimous (one outlet reports October 18) |
Deprioritizes use, possession and personal growing by adults 21+. Doesn't cover sales. We didn't find a resolution number. |
|
| Nevada City | August 26, 2026, City Council (Resolution 2026-29), unanimous |
"Personal and non-commercial use of naturally occurring entheogenic plants and fungi" by adults 21+ is a low priority. Commercial activity is outside it. |
San Diego County: we found none. As of October 21, 2026, no resolution by a San Diego County city or by the county Board of Supervisors appears in the UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics law and policy map, which lists no California county measure at all.19 Nor does one appear in the other city lists we checked. Trackers lag (a city list dated October 3, 2026 still omits Nevada City), so if your council has acted, tell us.
For the bills that tried to change the state law itself, see our California psychedelics bill tracker.
What has changed since 2024?
Legal access outside California grew. The law inside it didn't.
Questions people ask
Can you buy mushrooms in California legally?
Is psilocybin legal in California for medical use?
Only inside a registered clinical trial.5 No psilocybin drug is FDA-approved; Compass Pathways expects a launch in the first half of 2027 if FDA approves its drug and DEA reschedules it.13 Our trials directory shows which local studies are recruiting.
What states are psychedelic mushrooms legal in?
Is psilocybin legal in Oakland, California?
When will mushrooms be legal in California?
No date is set. The November 3, 2026 ballot has no psilocybin measure,18 and our bill tracker follows each state bill. The nearer change is federal: if FDA approves Compass's COMP360, launch would follow DEA rescheduling, the company says.13 That would make one medicine prescribable, not mushrooms legal.
Sources
California statute text was read from the Justia and FindLaw mirrors because the official site refused our requests; the link goes to the official California Legislative Information page.
- California Health and Safety Code section 11054 (Schedule I). California Legislative Information, accessed October 21, 2026.
- 21 U.S. Code § 812, Schedules of controlled substances. Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Executive Order 14401, Accelerating Medical Treatments for Serious Mental Illness. Federal Register, April 22, 2026.
- Advanced Integrative Medical Science Institute, PLLC v. DEA, No. 22-1568 (opinion). U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, February 13, 2025.
- ClinicalTrials.gov. U.S. National Library of Medicine, records accessed October 21, 2026.
- UCSD Psilocybin Clinical Trials for 2026, San Diego. UC San Diego Health, last updated October 6, 2026.
- Oregon Psilocybin Services: Access Psilocybin Services. Oregon Health Authority, accessed October 21, 2026.
- OPS Data Dashboard Archive, 2026 Q2. Oregon Health Authority, data through September 1, 2026.
- Natural Medicine Division home page (Approved Licenses, as of 10-16-26). Colorado Department of Revenue, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Colorado Revised Statutes 12-170-104, Definitions. Colorado.public.law (unofficial compilation), accessed October 21, 2026.
- Senate Bill 219, Medical Psilocybin Act (enacted text). New Mexico Legislature, 2025.
- Medical Psilocybin Program Frequently Asked Questions. New Mexico Department of Health, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Compass Pathways Announces Second Quarter and First Half 2026 Financial Results and Business Highlights. Compass Pathways, Form 8-K exhibit, August 5, 2026.
- CDPH Urges Consumers Not to Eat PolkaDot Brand Mushroom Magic Blend Chocolate Bars (NR24-038). California Department of Public Health, November 22, 2024.
- Publication 52, Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail, section 453 (controlled substances). U.S. Postal Service, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Drug Control: DEA Should Improve Its Religious Exemptions Petition Process for Psilocybin (Mushrooms) and Other Controlled Substances (GAO-24-106630). U.S. Government Accountability Office, May 30, 2024.
- Ley General de Salud (articles 245 and 479). Cámara de Diputados de México, text with reforms through January 15, 2026.
- Qualified Statewide Ballot Measures. California Secretary of State, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Psychedelics Law and Policy Map. UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics, accessed October 21, 2026.
- Nevada City Council unanimously approves resolution declaring psychedelic mushrooms as low-priority by law enforcement. The Union, August 28, 2026.
Keep reading
-
Every California psychedelics bill since 2019, and how San Diego's lawmakers voted
California's 12 psychedelics bills since 2019: four became law, SB 58 was vetoed, seven died. Floor votes, San Diego legislators' votes and a free CSV.
-
What happens if you're caught with magic mushrooms in California?
Possession is usually a misdemeanor; selling or transporting for sale is a felony. The California and federal statutes, their ranges, Prop 36 and diversion.
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Psychedelic clinical trials in San Diego: every study with a local site
All 45 psilocybin, LSD, MDMA, DMT and ketamine trials with a San Diego County site on ClinicalTrials.gov: status, sponsors, drug codes and how to check one.
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What does psychedelic therapy cost for someone in San Diego?
Sourced 2026 costs, insurance rules and travel for ketamine, Spravato, clinical trials and Oregon or Colorado psilocybin, starting from San Diego.