# Shatter

> Shatter is a glassy, translucent solvent-based concentrate that snaps when cold, formed when an extract stays in a stable, non-crystallised state.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/shatter.html
- Also written: pull and snap, snap and pull, shatter BHO, amber glass
- Glossary category: Processing · Evidence: Established
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

Shatter is a [hydrocarbon extract](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/solvent-based-extract.md) with a smooth, glass-like texture that cracks cleanly like toffee. Its texture comes from the extract staying in an amorphous, non-crystalline state: [cannabinoid](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/cannabinoid.md) acids, especially [THCA](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/thca.md), don't nucleate into [crystals](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/trichome.md). Agitation, moisture, residual [terpenes](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/terpene.md) and time all encourage crystallisation, which turns shatter cloudy and sugary ("sugaring" or "auto-buddering").

## In practice

"Pull and snap" describes shatter that is pliable when warm and snaps when cold, typically from higher terpene content. Shatter was the [dominant](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/dominant.md) solvent concentrate in the early 2010s; [badder](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/badder.md), sauce and live products have since overtaken it in many markets. Its translucence was long marketed as a sign of purity, but clarity mostly reflects the physical state, not potency or cleanliness. GenetixBay defines the product only and gives no extraction details.

## Don't confuse with

- **Wax / budder**: the same chemistry agitated into an opaque, soft texture.
- **Rosin**: [solventless](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/solventless.md); can be glassy but is a different product.
- **Isolate**: fully crystalline, single-compound.

## Related terms

[Wax](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/wax.md), [Badder](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/badder.md), [Solvent-based extract](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/solvent-based-extract.md), [Cured resin](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/cured-resin.md), [Concentrate](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/concentrate.md)