The Best Rolling Papers on Earth, According to High Times Readers

Rolling papers aren’t props. They’re the instrument that sets the pace and feel of a session. Whole towns learned to work with fiber, water and heat the way a luthier tunes a guitar. You can see it in the watermark, in how the seam seals, in how the ember travels without racing or stalling. Today’s factories use tools to keep every sheet the same thickness, the same airflow and the same clean cut. Small hand rooms still make special formats where a person’s eye and touch matter. Soldiers carried papers in field kits. Artists tucked giant sheets into record sleeves to make a point. The paper is part of the ritual, part of the memory of a room, and why a well-rolled joint feels like a small act of craft shared between friends.

That lineage lives in the details. Fiber blends chosen for strength and a low paper taste. Basis weight set to influence ignition and sheet strength. Porosity balanced so a cone stays lit and doesn’t canoe. Calendering and watermarking that help guide an even burn. Plant gums cured to hold without ghosting flavor. Clean cuts and true interleaving that limit edge frays that can start runs. The hum of modern machines gives consistency, while traditional techniques keep the soul of the sheet intact. When people who actually roll talk about “the best,” they’re not choosing a logo. They’re choosing a feel, a burn, a trust earned one booklet at a time.

So we asked our community a simple question: who makes the best rolling paper on earth? The response wasn’t a debate. It was a chorus. Four out of five readers reached for the same maker.

What follows is the snapshot, the counts and the context for why a thin sheet of fiber still carries so much weight once a flame touches the edge.

First, the scoreboard. Then the nuance.

We asked one question: Who makes the absolute best rolling paper in the world?

809 valid responses. One runaway favorite. Result: not even close.

Top line results RAW: 82.45%Zig-Zag: 4.94%Elements: 3.46%OCB: 1.73%JOB: 1.48%Blazy Susan: 0.99%Smoking: 0.62%Vibes: 0.62%Rizla: 0.62%Everyone else received single mentions.

RAW dominated the tally, but the comments reminded us how personal rolling is: shoutouts to Club’s no-glue purists, Bob Marley hemp classics, and S. D. Modiano Club from the collectors.

“There’s always a way to make it better.” — Josh Kesselman

One question. Multiple choice with an open write-in. No ranking. No trick wording: “Who do you think makes the absolute best rolling paper in the world?”

High Times readers and subscribers. Self-selected. 809 valid responses as of January 26, 2026.

We shared a link with our audience and tallied responses. We removed duplicate entries and obvious spam. This is not a nationally representative survey. It reflects the taste of High Times readers.

A directional snapshot of preference inside our community. Not market share. Not a lab test. One clean signal from people who love to roll and smoke.

RAW founder Josh Kesselman is also the Publisher of High Times. That matters, so we kept this tight:• Josh did not share or promote the poll• RAW did not share or promote the poll• Readers found the poll only through High Times channels

Josh’s approach to making papers helps explain why many readers prefer RAW. It’s a philosophy more than a product list.

Taste is one thing. Performance is another. We’re working with an independent lab to evaluate how rolling papers perform and what they’re made of. We’ll publish the data when it’s ready.

Planned measures include

If lab data lines up with what readers love, that’s a story. If it doesn’t, that’s a story too. Either way, you’ll see it.

• RAW’s share here is dominance. If you make papers, this is your benchmark• Legacy names like Zig-Zag and JOB still register. Heritage still matters• Elements and OCB have their own loyal fans• A dozen boutique names earned single votes. Fragmentation at the edges is real

A slice of respondents also sent ranked lists. They mostly echo the main result. RAW shows up first a lot. Elements is a frequent runner-up. Mascotte and Gizeh pop into top fives. Nostalgia brands like Rizla and Zig-Zag make regular cameos. It’s emotion, not science.

Sample mixes readers sentRAW, Elements, Smoking, Mascotte, Gizeh, Rizla…RAW, Mascotte, Gizeh, Rizla, Zig-Zag, Elements…Elements, Smoking, RAW, Gizeh, Rizla, OCB…

RAW — 667Zig-Zag — 40Elements — 28OCB — 14JOB — 12Blazy Susan — 8Vibes — 5Smoking — 5Rizla — 5Mascotte — 2Lion Rolling Circus — 2Club — 2TOPS — 1Snail Papers — 1Snail — 1Skunk brand rolling papers — 1S. D. Modiano Club — 1Randy’s! — 1Randy’s — 1KONG WRAPS — 1King Palm — 1Kashmir, made in USA — 1high hemp — 1Club papers — 1Club no glue 1 1/4 are the best ever! — 1Bob Marley Hemp — 1Bob Marley full hemp — 1Bob Marley — 1Bem Bolado — 1Amorphia Acapulco Gold — 1Amorphia — 1

Total responses: 809

Rolling papers are consumer goods. People like what they like. This piece reflects reader preference, not an endorsement. We’ll publish independent lab results so you can compare taste with performance.

Our audience just sent a love letter to RAW. The chorus was loud. Now we see what the lab says.

Photo by Jeff W on Unsplash