If you want to make your first order of cannabis seeds, be sure to read our guide on choosing a seedbank that can be trusted.
The wide availability of marijuana products in dispensaries and recreational shops doesn’t leave much incentive to grow your own – unless you want to grow something remarkable, of course. All the more reason to do your homework and choose a seed shop that’ll become your reliable supplier of excellent and time-proven cannabis genetics.
Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as you might think, as the industry is new and operates in the legal gray zone where customers feel vulnerable and unprotected. Of course, you can seek advice on forums, read thousands of reviews, and watch YouTube videos, but this deluge of information can become bewildering for the uninitiated pretty quickly.
So, we’ve done the job for you and tested a substantial number of online seedbanks to prepare this guide on how to choose a seed shop that not only promises you your best harvest ever but actually comes up with the goods.
What Things Can Tell You That a Seed Shop is Legit?
We’ve compiled a checklist of the things that’ll help you decide if a seedbank can truly be trusted:
- How long has it been operational? Read the information on the main page and “About Us” page carefully. Search for the answer elsewhere on the web. Google “seed_shop_url domain name” (type the actual URL address instead of ‘seed_shop_url’) – this will tell you a lot of things about the domain, such as when it was created, where it’s hosted, what rank it has on Alexa, and how it has changed over time.
- Is the website intuitive and informative? It takes a lot of time and effort to fill an online store with information and make it readily available. So, a serious business invests a lot in strain pictures and descriptions, meticulously lists their characteristics, and further improves the ease of use by organizing the strains into collections based on various criteria and filters.
- How many breeders/seedbanks does the seed shop work with? You’ll never know the quality of the seeds you’re about to buy unless you actually order, germinate, and grow them, BUT… there are indirect signs. One of them is the number of seedbanks on display. If there’s just one or two, it should raise a flag; if there are over a hundred, it means all those companies trust the reseller to handle their seeds properly so that they always arrive on your doorstep fresh and viable.
- What guarantees does the seed shop provide? Probably the most important consideration of all, it tells you how the shop will treat you if/when things go south. A good seed shop starts the long journey of winning your trust by creating a proper storage temperature of 39-43°F to keep seeds viable long term, visually checking every seed before dispatch, and ensuring damage-proof packaging. They should also resend the order if it was misdelivered (although the address was correct), lost in transit, or intercepted by customs. Also, make sure you get a germination guarantee and that there’s a well-defined procedure in place (claim forms, etc.).
- Is the payment process transparent and easy? Fortunately, we’re past the time when you could only pay for seeds by sending cash in an envelope. Today, payments by Bitcoin may give you the most peace of mind, but make sure a seed shop also does transactions in the open by accepting credit cards, wire transfers, or cash on delivery.
- Does the shop have working customer support? Check if the website has an online chat, ask them a question, and see if their response is fast and accurate. If the seed shop has only a contact form or gives an email address, use those.
- Are there social accounts? See if the company has a presence on social networks and whether the accounts are updated regularly. It’s a very important part of marketing strategy nowadays, and no serious business would neglect this channel of sales generation. Try to contact followers/subscribers and see if any of them has made a successful order.
- Does the shop have a blog? Growing cannabis is a hobby that’s becoming quite widespread but is still relatively new, and reliable information therefore comes in short supply. That’s why a good seedbank provides a plethora of informational articles on the cultivation of the plant. For you, it also means that the shop doesn’t just take the money and hand out packages but also has an intimate knowledge of the goods it sells.
There’s a lot of personal experience that went into this checklist, and we hope that by checking all the boxes in it, you’ll know for sure if a particular seedbank deserves your trust.
Our Shortlist of the Best Seed Shops to Date
Although by no means exhaustive, the list below is a good starting point for any cannabis grower. Frankly, we don’t think you’ll ever need to move beyond it (or even beyond the first item on the list), but it’s really up to you. Read the following carefully, and if you’re still not quite convinced, you always have the checklist above to fall back on.
(Our Pick) Herbies Seeds
With two decades worth of experience, Herbies Seeds is one of the leading online mega-malls for cannabis growers. In their huge collection, they offer over 1,800 strains from about 130 breeders, plus the option of ordering any rare genetics you may fancy.
Your shopping experience starts with a clean, easy-to-use website, a wide choice of payment methods including credit cards, and round-the-clock support. The assistance you get doesn’t end with your order arriving safely on your doorstep either, as you may want to ask growing questions and have them answered in a patient, polite, and professional manner.
Orders to the US and Australia may take a while to arrive from the warehouse in Europe, but the quality of the seeds and germination guarantee are worth the wait.
Pros:
- 20+ years on the market
- Huge selection of seeds, about 130 seedbanks
- Promos, discounts, many bonus seeds
- Intuitive website and straightforward strain descriptions
- High seed quality
- Straightforward payment process
- Beginners get their growing questions answered
- Moneyback & germination guarantee
- Many self-learning materials available on the blog
- 24/7 support
- Worldwide delivery including the US, Australia, and Thailand
Cons:
- Delivery to the US and Australia may take up to 3 weeks, so time your purchase accordingly.
MSNL
More than two decades in the game were likewise enough to turn MSNL into one of the market leaders. Now, it’s a mature big business that caters to weed growers worldwide, attracts them with a clean website and a wide choice of payment methods, and keeps them as repeat customers through a loyalty program.
We just wish they were more beginner-friendly, as it’s novices who could really use personal help on growing. The same category of gardeners would benefit from a germination guarantee (which, sadly, this shop lacks). Some experienced growers would probably also want a wider choice of strains than MSNL offers.
ILGM
What started as an ambitious personal project that set out to teach the masses the art and science of weed cultivation has long turned into one of the most popular seed shops out there. These guys really know their cannabis science and gladly share their knowledge and their passion. ILGM is convenient to use and delivers to the US in as little as one week.
While all this is great, we’d say this seedbank relies too heavily on its in-house breeding team and doesn’t resell other breeders’ creations. This lack of competition isn’t conducive to superior genetic quality and results in a rather restricted selection of strains.
Pros:
- Well-structured growing knowledge base (separate site)
- Loyalty program
- 1-week USA delivery
- Intuitive website
- Free growing book for subscribers
- Free delivery on all orders
- Many payment methods
Cons:
- Poor quality and low germination rates
- Poor choice of genetics
- Only in-house genetics, no strains from other seedbanks
- Many poor reviews left unanswered
Seedsman
One of the industry’s veterans and undisputed leaders, Seedsman is well-known throughout the growing community worldwide. They have won growers’ trust through constantly expanding their collection and their payment methods, as well as through their loyalty program and active presence on social networks. They also boost your confidence by posting videos of plants grown from their seeds in real-world settings.
However, this flagship among the world’s cannabis seed banks might be too big for its own good, as its website seems a bit outdated and not the most convenient to use. Moreover, beginner growers might sometimes feel that they are neglected and don’t get enough customer support.
Seed Supreme
Seed Supreme features upward of 4,000 marijuana strains from every reputable breeder in the industry. With constant promotions, discounts, and bonus seeds, the shopping experience may seem like a never-ending bonanza, while the guarantee on delivery and the stealth shipment option will put your mind at ease.
What you may miss, especially if you only dip your toes into the art of cannabis growing, is good customer support and a germination guarantee – two things that beginners can never get enough of. Also, make sure your country is on the list of places where this shop delivers, and don’t forget that the guaranteed delivery and stealth shipping will cost you extra.
Pros:
- High seed quality
- Huge selection of genetics (over 4,000 strains)
- Guaranteed delivery option
- Promos, discounts, many bonus seeds
- Stealth delivery option
Cons:
- No germination guarantee
- Extra charges on guaranteed and stealth delivery
- Lack of good customer support
- Delivery to a limited number of countries
Act wise while choosing a source of your seeds – your whole harvest will depend on it. Do your research, trust the facts, and make an informed decision: with our review it won’t be that difficult!