Consumption. Daily smoking rates in Australia are around the lowest among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries – 11.2% for Australians aged 15 and over in 2019 (AIHW 2020, Table 2.7) 16.1% in 2021 (or nearest year) for OECD countries (OECD 2022).
About 11% of the general population aged 14 and over reported in 2019 having ever used e-cigarettes. At 26.1%, ever use was highest among young adults aged between 18 and 24 years, with lower use among older age groups.
1. Nauru - 52.10% The micro Pacific Ocean island state of Nauru has the highest smoking rate in the world, with 52.10 % of the population being smokers. And with a population of just slightly over 10,000 people, this makes the number of smokers quite striking.
The figure shows that the proportion of Indigenous Australian people aged 18 and over who smoke has steadily declined, from 54.5% in 1994 to 43.4% in 2018–19. Similarly, the proportion of non-Indigenous Australian people who smoke declined from 24% in 2002 to 15.1% in 2017–18.
Daily percentage of smokers among persons aged 15 and over
The countries with the fewest smokers are Sweden (9.3 per cent), Iceland (11.2 per cent), Finland (12.5 per cent), Norway (12.9 per cent) and Luxembourg (13.5 per cent).
Since 2011-12, the proportion of current daily smokers has decreased in all age groups – except for those aged 55-64 years and 65 years and over. Over this same period, the proportion of young people aged 18-24 years who were current daily smokers has halved (16.5% in 2011-12 to 7.1% in 2021-22).
In 2020, approximately 25.6 percent of the Chinese population with an age 15 years and above smoked tobacco products.
Approximately 70 to 80% of the adult homeless population smokes cigarettes [2], compared to around 15% percent of the general population [3]. Smoking cessation programs could offer an important opportunity to address preventable mortality and morbidity for this population [4].
The reasons for the high smoking rates among Aboriginal people are complex. They include: being exposed to smoking early in life and living in a community where smoking is 'the social norm' social disadvantage such as living in poverty, leaving school early and unemployment.
By Age. Current cigarette smoking was highest among people aged 25–44 years and 45–64 years. Current cigarette smoking was lowest among people aged 18-24 years.
Both France and the U.S. have cultural ties to cigarette smoking. However, in France, the association of smoking with national identity through cigarette marketing tactics and the birth of café culture in the 1960s are large reasons why high smoking rates persist.
While a high percentage of men in Japan have smoked throughout in the postwar years, the rate for women for many years hovered between 10 and 15%, followed there too by a decline in recent years to be floating currently a little below 10%.
In 2017, JPS continued to be the leading brand in Australia after overtaking Winfield in 2016. JPS was launched in Australia in 2009,7 and was one of the first super-value brands (i.e. low-cost relative to other brands) on the Australian cigarette market—see Supplementary Table 10.7.
Among daily smokers, the average number of cigarettes smoked per day declined from about 17 cigarettes in 2005 to 14 cigarettes in 2016.
How Much Do Cigarettes Cost in Australia Now? As of 2022, a pack of cigarettes costs $40 on average. For example, a 25 pack of a leading brand is now $48.95, while a 20 pack is around $35.
In all states and territories, it's illegal to smoke in enclosed public places including: public transport such as trains, planes and buses. office buildings. shopping malls.
In 2016, the Northern Territory had the highest rate of homeless people (about 600 persons per 10,000 population) and Tasmania the lowest (32 per 10,000).
Males made up 55.9% of people experiencing homelessness; females made up 44.1%. 23.0% of all people experiencing homelessness were aged from 12 to 24 years.
The share of individuals who currently smoke cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos or a pipe in Greece was around 42 percent in 2020, which makes the Mediterranean country have the highest proportion of smokers in the EU.
Tobacco Consumption
30.9% of Russian adults (age 15+) use tobacco (men 50.9%; women 14.3%), nearly all of whom smoke cigarettes. 0.4% of adults use smokeless tobacco and 2.8% smoke waterpipe tobacco. About 17% of boys and 10% of girls (age 15) smoke in the Russian Federation.
Nearly one-in-four adults in the world smoke tobacco. But there are large differences between men and women. More than one-third of men in the world smoke. Less than one-in-ten women do.
As a percentage of the retail price of a cigarette, Australia has one of the highest rates of national tobacco-specific tax in the world: 65% in 2020. But countries also impose other levies on tobacco, such as importation or sales taxes, which can change the ranking.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people smoke more than other Australians and are at higher risk of serious disease and death.
In May 2016, the Australian Government announced that it would implement annual increases in tobacco excise of 12.5% up to and including 2020, raising the cost of a pack of cigarettes to $A40. This increase will lead to Australia having one of the highest prices of cigarettes in the world.