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Is microdosing psilocybin legal in New York?

No. Microdosing uses the same psilocybin that New York lists in Schedule I, and possessing any amount is a crime; the law makes no exception for microdoses. In placebo-controlled studies so far, microdosing psilocybin hasn't reliably done better than a placebo for mood, anxiety or thinking.

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Last checked by the Mushrooms New York desk

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On this page
  1. The short answer
  2. What microdosing means, and who does it
  3. What placebo-controlled studies found
  4. Microdosing research in New York
  5. What New York law says about microdosing
  6. Risks no study has ruled out
  7. Questions people ask
  8. Sources

The short answer

Microdosing psilocybin is illegal in New York. The Public Health Law puts psilocybin and psilocyn in Schedule I and covers any "material, compound, mixture, or preparation" that contains "any quantity" of them, so a capsule, a gummy or a bit of dried mushroom is a controlled substance like any other amount. Possessing it is at least a class A misdemeanor under Penal Law 220.03.1, 2

That holds however the psilocybin is packaged, including the microdose capsules sold by My Mushroom Dispensary, the online shop for adults 21+ run by the team that publishes this site: ordering them, like ordering any psilocybin, is illegal under federal law and New York law.1, 3

What microdosing means, and who does it

Researchers describe microdosing as "regularly using low doses of psychedelic drugs," usually below the level that causes hallucinations.5, 7 Studies have used dried mushrooms and truffles, with different amounts and schedules.6, 8 This site doesn't give amounts or schedules.

One national estimate puts it at about 1 in 15 young adults. An analysis led by Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, covering 3,094 Americans aged 19 to 30, surveyed in 2022 and 2023, found 6.8% had microdosed a hallucinogen in the past year: 73.1% of those who used hallucinogens at all. People who microdosed were far more likely to use alcohol, cannabis and other drugs too.11 In New York, federal survey estimates put past-year hallucinogen use at 4.24% of residents 12 and older in 2023 and 2024, about 718,000 people; the survey doesn't ask about microdosing.12

"Microdosing" also means other things in New York medicine. Montefiore in the Bronx ran a trial of buprenorphine "microdose inductions" for opioid use disorder, and the term is used for low doses of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.13 This page is about psilocybin only.

What placebo-controlled studies found

Placebo control matters here, because people who expect to feel better often do. In one study of 81 people starting to microdose, positive expectations at the outset predicted who improved.10 These are the placebo-controlled microdosing studies we found in PubMed that included psilocybin, plus a 2026 review.

Placebo-controlled microdosing studies that included psilocybin, and a 2026 review
StudyDesignWhat it found
Szigeti et al., 2021 (PMID 33648632)191 people mixing placebo capsules into their own microdosing routine, unaware which was which; most microdosed LSD, about a quarter psilocybin mushroomsBoth groups improved over four weeks, with no significant difference; small differences could be explained by people guessing which capsules they had5
Cavanna et al., 2022 (PMID 35918311)Double-blind, 34 people starting to microdose mushroomsStronger effects only in those who guessed right; no gain in well-being, creativity or cognition, and small signs of impairment6
Marschall et al., 2022 (PMID 34915762)Preregistered, double-blind crossover over three weeksNo effect on emotion processing, anxiety or depression compared with placebo7
Prochazkova et al., 2026 (PMID 41110634)Two double-blind trials with psilocybin trufflesNo significant effect on thinking, memory or mood after correction for multiple tests; more negative bodily feelings8
Prochazkova et al., 2026 (PMID 41187880)Three trials pooled, 171 peopleA higher share of original ideas on one creativity measure; no effect on the others8
Meshkat et al., 2026 (PMID 42593636)Review of 24 psychedelic microdosing studies with 3,681 healthy adultsRandomized trials showed no clear drop in depression, anxiety or stress; side effects similar to controls9

The 2026 review covered healthy adults only. Its authors, including a researcher at NYU Langone's Center for Psychedelic Medicine, concluded that larger, well-designed randomized trials are still needed.9 In people with a diagnosis, a 2025 Swiss and Dutch trial of repeated low doses of LSD in 53 adults with ADHD found it no better than placebo.10

Microdosing research in New York

No psilocybin microdosing trial lists a New York site on ClinicalTrials.gov. The closest is Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center's phase 2 study of repeated low-dose psilocybin with psychotherapy for chronic cancer pain in patients on opioids, in Buffalo. It's registered as not yet recruiting, and its estimated start date has passed.13 New York's other psilocybin studies test supervised sessions, not microdosing; our trials directory lists them all, with how to apply.

What New York law says about microdosing

New York's drug laws don't treat small amounts differently:1, 2

  • Possession. Knowingly possessing any amount is criminal possession in the seventh degree, a class A misdemeanor with up to 364 days in jail. Felony charges start at small weights; our penalties guide has the thresholds.
  • Sharing. The Penal Law defines "sell" to include "give or dispose of to another," so handing a friend a capsule is at least criminal sale in the fifth degree, a class D felony.
  • No local exception. Psilocybin isn't decriminalized anywhere in New York, and a search of the City Council's legislative records found no measure on it.4
  • Federal law. Psilocybin is Schedule I, distributing it is a federal crime, and the Postal Service says mailing a controlled substance is unlawful whenever distributing it is.3

Our guide to whether shrooms are legal in New York covers the rest of the law, and our bill tracker follows the Albany bills that would change it.

Risks no study has ruled out

  • Heart valves. Psilocybin and other psychedelics act on the serotonin 5-HT2B receptor, which is linked to heart-valve damage from some older drugs. Reviews in 2023 and 2024 called valve disease a potential risk of long-term microdosing that hasn't been properly studied.14
  • Mental health history. New York psilocybin trials exclude people with a personal or close family history of psychosis or bipolar disorder;13 the trial screening list has the rest.
  • What's actually in it. In lab tests of eight "mushroom" gummies from smoke and vape shops in Portland, Oregon, six contained 4-AcO-DMT, a synthetic drug, and one labeled psilocybin-free contained psilocybin.15 See our report on smoke-shop mushroom gummies in NYC.

If someone is in danger, call 911; New York's Good Samaritan law protects people who seek help for an overdose from possession charges.2 For a mental health crisis, call or text 988, and for a possible poisoning call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Our safety and help page has more.

Questions people ask

Is microdosing mushrooms legal in New York?

No. Psilocybin is Schedule I under New York and federal law in any amount, and possessing it is at least a class A misdemeanor.1, 2

Is microdosing decriminalized in NYC?

No. New York has no decriminalization or deprioritization measure for psilocybin, and a search of the City Council's legislative records found none.4

Does microdosing psilocybin work?

Not beyond placebo, so far. People often report feeling better, but in blinded trials people on placebo improved about as much, and a 2026 review found no clear benefit for depression, anxiety or stress.5, 9

Can I join a microdosing study in New York?

Not as of November 2, 2026: no psilocybin microdosing trial lists a New York site. Roswell Park's low-dose study for cancer pain in Buffalo hasn't started recruiting.13

Sources

  1. New York Public Health Law 3306, Schedule I(d), items (18) psilocybin and (19) psilocyn. New York State Senate, revision of October 6, 2023.
  2. New York Penal Law 220.03, 220.00, 220.31, 220.78 and 70.15. New York State Senate, retrieved November 2, 2026.
  3. 21 CFR 1308.11(d), Schedule I: (29) psilocybin and (30) psilocyn, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations; 21 U.S.C. 841(a), Legal Information Institute; and Publication 52, section 453.31, controlled substances, U.S. Postal Service.
  4. New York City Council legislation search (Legistar) for psilocybin, psychedelic and related terms, all years, searched November 2, 2026; and Psilocybin: Summary of State Laws, Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association, November 2025 (New York entry).
  5. Szigeti B, et al. Self-blinding citizen science to explore psychedelic microdosing. eLife, 2021;10:e62878. PMID 33648632.
  6. Cavanna F, et al. Microdosing with psilocybin mushrooms: a double-blind placebo-controlled study. Transl Psychiatry, 2022;12(1):307. PMID 35918311.
  7. Marschall J, et al. Psilocybin microdosing does not affect emotion-related symptoms and processing: a preregistered field and lab-based study. J Psychopharmacol, 2022;36(1):97-113. PMID 34915762.
  8. Prochazkova L, et al. Cognitive and subjective effects of psilocybin microdosing: results from two double-blind placebo-controlled longitudinal trials. Neuropharmacology, 2026;283:110722. PMID 41110634; and Microdosing psilocybin and its effect on creativity: lessons learned from three double-blind placebo controlled longitudinal trials, Neuropharmacology, 2026;284:110732. PMID 41187880.
  9. Meshkat S, et al. Efficacy and safety of psychedelic microdosing on psychological outcomes in healthy adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. CNS Drugs, 2026;40(10):1369-1393. PMID 42593636.
  10. Kaertner LS, et al. Positive expectations predict improved mental-health outcomes linked to psychedelic microdosing. Sci Rep, 2021;11(1):1941. PMID 33479342; and Mueller L, et al. Safety and efficacy of repeated low-dose LSD for ADHD treatment in adults, JAMA Psychiatry, 2025;82(6):555-562. PMID 40105807.
  11. Keyes KM, Terry-McElrath Y, Patrick ME. Epidemiology of hallucinogen microdosing among young adults in the United States: a national study. Drug Alcohol Rev, 2026;45(3):e70133. PMID 41748121.
  12. 2023-2024 NSDUH state prevalence estimates, Table 11: hallucinogen use in the past year, and the matching totals tables (Table 11, numbers in thousands). Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
  13. ClinicalTrials.gov records NCT06827054 (Roswell Park), NCT05118204 (Montefiore), and NCT06349083, NCT06592833 and NCT06899165 (exclusions), and searches for microdose, microdosing and low-dose psilocybin at New York sites, November 2, 2026; and Beck H, Clements JN. Considerations and challenges in microdosing of GLP-1-based receptor agonists, Expert Opin Pharmacother, 2026. PMID 42788826.
  14. Tagen M, et al. The risk of chronic psychedelic and MDMA microdosing for valvular heart disease. J Psychopharmacol, 2023;37(9):876-890. PMID 37572027; and Rouaud A, et al. Microdosing psychedelics and the risk of cardiac fibrosis and valvulopathy: comparison to known cardiotoxins, J Psychopharmacol, 2024;38(3):217-224. PMID 38214279.
  15. Correia MS, et al. Quantitative analysis of recreational psychoactive mushroom gummies in Portland, Oregon. Clin Toxicol, 2025;63(4):261-266. PMID 39977248.

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Reported and checked by the Mushrooms New York desk. Every figure on this page links to its source. If something is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll correct it in the open, as our editorial standards describe. Mushrooms New York is published by the team behind My Mushroom Dispensary, an online shop. We sell no advertising.