There are approximately 730,000 current smokers in Ireland
20% of men are current smokers but only 14.6% of women
18% of the population are current smokers, with 14% daily smokers and 4% occasional smokers. These figures are the same as those reported in 2021-2022.
Smoking is higher amongst men (21%) than women (15%) and higher amongst those who are unemployed or have not completed the Leaving Certificate.
33% of the population are ex-smokers. 49% of those who have smoked in the past year have attempted to quit smoking, with 23% of this group successfully quitting smoking. 58% used willpower alone, 25% used e-cigarettes, and 19% used nicotine replacement therapy.
8% of the population currently use e-cigarettes either daily (5%) or occasionally (3%), with a further 12% reporting they have tried them in the past but no longer use them. In 2022, 6% were current users of e-cigarettes.
A fifth (20%) of women aged 15-24 use e-cigarettes either daily or occasionally; the rate for men of the same age group is 16%.
Source: Healthy Ireland Survey 2023. (2023, November 22). Department of Health. https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/73c9d-healthy-ireland-survey-2023/#smoking
For further information and full references, click through to the detailed datasheets above.
3,836 people die every year due to tobacco smoking in Ireland.
Estimated NRT market size is 27.1 million €.
In Ireland, e-cigarettes are legally allowed, including purchase through online channels and vending machines. They are also available in general retail outlets. The law mandates notification for new e-cigarette products and requires them to be sold in child-resistant and tamper-proof containers. Health warnings on packaging are mandatory, and the minimum legal age for purchase is 18 years. Notably, there are no restrictions on product flavours. However, there are limits on nicotine content, which must be equal to or less than 20 mg/ml. Restrictions also apply to their use in public places, and tank sizes must not exceed 2 ml. There is no excise tax on e-cigarettes in Ireland.
In a survey conducted in 2017, 14% of respondents stated that they had no idea whether vaping is harmful to health, 27% believed that vaping is not harmful or is less harmful than cigarettes, and 59% responded that vaping is harmful to health or more harmful than cigarettes.
In terms of prevalence, there were an estimated 265,457 current vapers in 2021. As of 2025, adult current e-cigarette use prevalence was 8%. In 2024, 11.1% of adult females and 11.3% of adult males reported being current e-cigarette users. The adult daily e-cigarette vaping prevalence was 5% in 2023, and in the same year, 20% of respondents stated that they had ever tried e-cigarettes.
Heated tobacco products (HTPs) are regulated and categorised as tobacco products and are allowed in Ireland including their online sales. These products are available in general retail stores. The law, however, requires HTPs to bear health warnings on their packaging, restrictions are also imposed on their flavours and health benefit claims of these products are not allowed.
The number of current HTP users in Ireland has declined from an estimated 69,000 adult individuals in 2020 to an estimated 47,803 adult people in 2023. This can be translated that the prevalence of HTP use among adults have decreased from 1.8% in 2020 to 1.20% in 2023.
In Ireland, Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) is legally allowed. This includes the sale and purchase of NRT products without a prescription from general stores. NRT products are included on the country’s essential drugs list, and the government partially covers NRT cost. The estimated market size of NRT products in Ireland was € 27.1 million in 2019.
Used in Scandinavia for more than 200 years, snus is providing smokers in Sweden and Norway with an alternative to combustible cigarettes. Find out what it is, and why it is considered a safer nicotine product in our briefing paper.
Nicotine pouches are a relatively new product which can provide users of high-risk tobacco with an alternative that poses fewer risks to their health. Read more about nicotine pouches in our briefing paper
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