As long as it has existed, vaping has been very much a public concern. In the beginning, vaping received a massive amount of attention because millions of people were doing it to help themselves quit smoking. In more recent years, though, vaping has sometimes been cast in a negative light – particularly in the United States – because of controversies such as EVALI and teen vaping. That has stifled vaping’s ability to aid in tobacco harm reduction, but it hasn’t stopped it entirely. For example, did you know that there are now more vapers than smokers in New Zealand? That’s just one of the vaping statistics we’ve uncovered for this list.

Since vaping isn’t a new technology anymore, it’s hard to find updated vaping statistics for 2023. You can search for an answer to a simple question – “how many people vape,” for instance – but the only numbers you’re likely to find will be from several years ago.

With this list of updated vaping stats, we’re going to change that. We’ve scoured the Internet for the most up-to-date numbers about vaping, and the goal of this list is to present current answers – updated for 2023 – for all of your questions about vaping and e-cigarettes.

Reading this list, you’re going to learn:

• How many people vape in the world today?
• Has vaping helped at all to decrease smoking rates?
• How much money does the vaping industry earn?
• How much is the vaping industry projected to grow in the future?
• How many vape shops are there?
• How many people are employed in the vaping industry?

From the vaping industry to the people and the products themselves, we’re going to answer your questions here. This is the comprehensive list of worldwide vaping statistics for 2023.

Statistics About the People Who Vape

How Many People Vape in the World?

It’s estimated that there are at least 82 million vapers in the world in 2023.

That number is derived directly from survey results when possible. In regions in which survey data is poor, trends in the growth of the vaping industry were used to estimate the size of the user base.

Source: Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction

How Many People Vape in the United States?

In the United States, about 8 percent of the adult population vapes. That’s approximately 20.66 million people.

The US comprises just over a quarter of the worldwide vaping population. The prevalence of vaping varies by gender and age. About 7 percent of American men vape, and about 6 percent of women vape. Reportedly, 13 percent of American adults aged 18-49 vape, while just 1 percent of Americans aged 50 or older vape.

Source: Gallup

How Many People Vape in Canada?

About 5% of Canadians vape, which translates to approximately 1.9 million people.

The number of vapers varies significantly between provinces. The highest percentages of vapers reside in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Quebec.

• In New Brunswick, 9 percent of Canadians vape.
• In Prince Edward Island, 8 percent of Canadians vape.
• In Quebec, 6 percent of Canadians vape.

Source: Statistics Canada

How Many People Vape in the United Kingdom?

In the United Kingdom, vapers account for 8.3 percent of the population. That’s around 5.56 million people.

Of those, 27.9 percent started vaping to help themselves quit smoking, and 17.7 percent started vaping to help themselves keep off of tobacco.

Source: Gov.UK

How Many People Vape in France?

Approximately 5.59 percent of French adults vape, accounting for about 3.1 million people.

With a nationwide smoking rate of 34.6 percent, France represents an enormous potential market for the vaping industry.

Source: Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction

How Many People Vape in Germany?

In Germany, 2.1 percent of the adult population vapes. That’s about 1.5 million people.

Germany has one of the world’s highest smoking rates at 28 percent.

Source: Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction

How Many People Vape in Italy?

In Italy, 1.37 percent of adults vape. That’s a total of 721,900 people.

So far, vaping hasn’t managed to do a great deal to curb Italy’s high smoking rate of 23.4 percent.

Source: Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction

How Many People Vape in Australia?

In Australia, 2.2 percent of adults report themselves as current vapers. That’s a total of about 3.86 million people.

Men are much more likely than women to vape in Australia. While 2.9 percent of men are vapers, only 1.6 percent of women vape. Vaping prevalence in Australia varies significantly by age.

• Among those aged 18-24, 4.8 percent of Australians vape.
• Among those aged 18-44, 3.2 percent of Australians vape.
• Among those aged 45+, 1.5 percent of Australians vape.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

How Many People Vape in New Zealand?

In New Zealand, 8.3 percent of adults are reported as being daily vapers. That’s a total of about 355,000 people.

New Zealand reported its lowest smoking rate of all time at just 8 percent in 2022. In 2021 and 2022, the daily smoking rate among the Māori population dropped from 22.3 percent to 19.9 percent, with the smoking rate among Māori women dropping by one quarter.

Source: The Guardian

How Many People Vape in Japan?

In Japan, 1.9 percent of the adult population vapes. That translates to about 1.99 million people.

Japan forbids the domestic sale of vaping products with nicotine unless those products have been approved for medical use. As of 2023, no products have received such approval. However, people in Japan are free to import vaping products with nicotine for personal use. Heat-not-burn tobacco vaporizing devices are also popular in Japan.

Source: Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction

How Many People Vape in China?

As of 2018, 0.9 percent of Chinese adults were full-time vapers. That’s about 10.5 million people.

This information comes from the 2018 Global Adult Tobacco Survey. It doesn’t appear that another reliable survey of tobacco and nicotine use in China has been conducted since then. China allows vaping, but it doesn’t allow online sales of the products and doesn’t allow any flavors except tobacco. These restrictions have severely limited the popularity of vaping.

Source: Tobacco Induced Diseases

How Many People Vape in Malaysia?

In Malaysia, 5.4 percent of adults vape on a daily basis. That’s about 1.22 million people.

Although vaping is legal in Malaysia, e-liquid with nicotine is prohibited. News reports in 2021 suggested that the Malaysian government intended to legalize and tax vape juice with nicotine, but it’s unclear whether that has actually occurred.

Update: Malaysia finally legalized and implemented a tax on e-liquid with nicotine on April 1, 2023.

Source: Tobacco Induced Diseases

How Many People Vape in the Philippines?

There are 2.7 million people who vape in the Philippines.

That figure represents a year-over-year growth of 17 percent. About 3 percent of the world’s vapers live in the Philippines.

Source: Government of the Philippines

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates?

In the nations where vaping products are legal and easily accessible, it’s likely that vaping has contributed to decreased smoking rates. Vaping has had the biggest impact on smoking rates in nations that encourage smokers to switch to vaping if they can’t quit by other means.

In nations that discourage or heavily restrict vaping, on the other hand – such as India and China – smoking rates have been largely stagnant for several years. About 48.6 percent of the world’s smokers live in India and China.

Sources: Macrotrends, Harm Reduction Journal, BBC, Worldbank

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in the United States?

The smoking and vaping rates in the United States seem to show a very clear correlation with one another. Since 2016, the US smoking rate has decreased from 15.5 percent to 11 percent. During the same period, the vaping rate has increased from 2.8 percent to 8 percent.

Sources: CDC, (2), (3), (4), (5), Gallup

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in Canada?

According to the Canadian Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs Survey, the vaping rate in Canada has remained roughly the same at about 5 percent since 2019. From 2019 to present, however, the smoking rate in Canada has decreased from 14 percent to 10 percent. There is no obvious correlation between increased vaping rates in Canada and decreased smoking rates.

Sources: Statistics Canada, Government of Canada

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in the United Kingdom?

The government of the United Kingdom actively encourages smokers to quit by switching to vaping if they can’t quit by other means, and the available data seems to suggest a correlation between decreased smoking rates and increased vaping rates in the UK. In particular, there was a major decline in the UK smoking rate – and a similarly large increase in the vaping rate – between 2021 and 2022.

Sources: Gov.UK, (2), (3), (4), Addiction, BBC

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in France?

Vaping has proven to be extremely popular in France, with the vaping rate doubling every few years from 0.78 percent in 2013 – around 500,000 people – to 5.59 percent or about 3.1 million people today. The available data, however, suggests that France’s smoking rate has remained roughly the same even as vaping has exploded in popularity.

Sources: Reuters, Revue des Maladies Respiratoires, Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction, Pourquoi Docteur, Foundation for a Smoke-Free World

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in Australia?

We are unable to find reliable information on the number of vapers in Australia prior to 2019. However, statistics suggest that the vaping rate in Australia increased dramatically from 2019 to 2022 – from 1.1 percent of adults to 2.2 percent. In that same period, the smoking rate in Australia dropped from 14 percent to 11.6 percent.

Sources: Macrotrends, Tobacco in Australia (2), Australian Bureau of Statistics

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in New Zealand?

We are unable to find reliable information on the number of vapers in New Zealand prior to 2022 and therefore can’t correlate New Zealand’s smoking and vaping rates over time. However, the most recent data suggests that 8.3 percent of New Zealanders vape, while just 8 percent smoke. New Zealand now has one of the world’s lowest smoking rates, and it’s highly likely that vaping has played a significant role in making that happen.

Source: The Guardian

Has Vaping Decreased Smoking Rates in Malaysia?

Malaysia has an extremely high smoking rate. That’s particularly true among males, who have a smoking rate of nearly 44 percent. From 2015-2020, the vaping rate among Malaysian adults increased from 3.2 to 5.4 percent. In that same period, the smoking rate decreased from 22.8 to 21 percent. Vaping appears to have made a difference, and it’ll probably make an even greater difference following Malaysia’s legalization of vape juice with nicotine in April 2023.

Sources: BMC Public Health, Tobacco Induced Diseases, (2), The Edge Markets

How Many Vape Shops Are There?

How Many Vape Shops Are There in the United States?

In 2023, it’s estimated that there are 9,569 vape shops in the United States.

Despite the FDA’s denial of virtually all vaping-related premarket applications, the US vaping community has continued to grow. On average, the number of vape shops in the United States grows by 19.9 percent per year.

Source: IBIS World

How Many Vape Shops Are There in Canada?

According to an estimate, there were 1,000 vape shops in Canada as of 2018.

Given the amount of time that has elapsed since that estimate was published, it’s likely that the number of vape shops has grown since then.

Source: DepQuebec

How Many Vape Shops Are There in the United Kingdom?

There were 2,707 vape shops in the United Kingdom according to an estimate from the end of 2020.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, it was thought that there were over 4,000 vape shops in the UK. However, many hundreds of vape shops were forced to close during the pandemic as a result of shutdowns and a shift to online shopping. It is likely that the numbers have rebounded somewhat since then.

Source: The Grocer

How Many Vape Shops Are There in the European Union?

There are approximately 12,000 vape shops throughout the European Union.

Vape shops are particularly prevalent in France (2,600 vape shops) and Germany (1,500 vape shops).

Sources: Eurispes, Statista, ECigIntelligence

How Many Vape Shops Are There in France?

There were approximately 2,600 vape shops in France as of 2017.

This is the most recent statistic available on the number of vape shops in France. Given that this figure is several years old, it’s likely that the French vaping industry has grown a great deal since then.

Source: Statista

How Many Vape Shops Are There in Australia?

There were approximately 200 vape shops in Australia as of 2019.

Given the amount of time that has elapsed, it’s likely that the number of vape shops has grown since then. Australia’s laws prohibit the sale of nicotine e-liquid without a prescription. After obtaining a prescription, the consumer must buy the e-liquid from a compounding pharmacy or import it from an overseas vendor. It’s likely that a significant number of Australians import their vaping products rather than buying them locally, as local vape shops can only carry nicotine-free products.

Source: Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association

How Many Vape Shops Are There in New Zealand?

There are 956 vape shops in New Zealand as of October 2022.

That number represented a massive increase over the 666 registered New Zealand vape shops earlier in the year. Although some citizens complained about the proliferation of vape shops, it’s highly likely that the wide availability of vaping products has contributed greatly to New Zealand’s rapidly decreasing smoking rates.

Source: New Zealand Doctor

Statistics About the Vaping Industry

What Is the Total Revenue of the Vaping Industry Worldwide?

The total worldwide yearly revenue of the vaping industry is $24.61 billion as of 2023.

The United States is the biggest market for vaping products and generates $8.279 billion (about 33.6 percent) of that revenue.

Source: Statista

What Is the Projected Future Growth of the Vaping Industry?

Analysts predict that the vaping industry will continue growing at a compound annual rate of 3.44 to 30.6 percent.

All of the analysts’ reports available online suggest that the vaping industry will continue to grow rapidly for the foreseeable future. Estimates for the future growth of the industry vary widely between sources, ranging from compound annual growth rates of 3.44 percent at the low end to 30.6 percent at the high end. We’ve taken those projections and applied them to the current known size of the vaping industry to create a graph showing the industry’s wide range of possibilities for the future.

Sources: Statista, Grand View Research, Mordor Intelligence

What Are the World’s Biggest Vaping Markets?

The United States is the vaping industry’s largest market, producing $8.279 billion (33.6 percent) of the industry’s total consumer revenue.

Other major vaping markets include:

• The United Kingdom ($3.89 billion / 15.8 percent)
• Canada ($1.83 billion / 7.4 percent)
• Germany ($1.15 billion / 4.6 percent)
• France ($1.11 billion / 4.5 percent)
• Australia ($334 million / 1.3 percent)

Sources: Statista, Convenience Store News

What Are the Most Popular E-Cigarette Brands?

With 1,148,000 monthly Internet searches, Elf Bar is the most popular e-cigarette brand.

It is difficult to conclusively say which e-cigarette brands sell the most units because traditional tobacco retailers like convenience stores and gas stations report their sales figures, but private vape shops do not.

Search engine traffic also isn’t completely reliable as an indicator of brands’ popularity because in some cases, a specific product model will receive more search traffic than the brand that makes the product. Based on monthly worldwide search volume, however, these are the most popular brands in the vaping industry as of 2023.

• Elf Bar/Elfbar: 1,148,000
• JUUL: 602,000
• Geek Bar/Geekbar/Geek Vape/Geekvape: 426,000
• Vaporesso: 397,000
• Puff Bar/Puffbar: 390,000
• SMOK: 303,000
• Voopoo: 191,000
• Vuse: 137,000
• NJOY: 99,000
• Uwell: 41,000
• Innokin: 24,000

Source: AHREFS

How Has Government Regulation Affected the US Vaping Market?

The US vaping market has grown under FDA regulation and is projected to continue growing at a compound annual rate of 3.87 percent.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration has only granted marketing approval orders to a handful of vaping products owned by Big Tobacco brands including NJOY (Altria), Vuse (R. J. Reynolds) and Logic (Japan Tobacco). As evidenced by the monthly global search volumes listed above, these brands occupy a relatively small segment of the overall vaping industry. All other brands are essentially gray-market products that exist on the U.S. market only because the FDA has not yet demanded their removal.

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Statista

How Many E-Cigarette and E-Liquid Companies Are There?

The worldwide vaping industry consisted of at least 460 known brands as of 2014.

It isn’t known how many companies are in the industry today. In the United States, many brands have shut down over the past few years due to industry consolidation and insufficient resources with which to contest marketing denial orders from the FDA. Meanwhile, many new brands have almost certainly appeared elsewhere in the world. As of 2020, the FDA had received premarket applications for 8,092,129 individual vaping products. Of those, 8,092,102 were denied or are still pending.

Sources: Tobacco Control, CSP Daily News

How Many Jobs Has the Vaping Industry Created?

According to a report compiled in 2019, the United States vaping industry employed over 166,000 people who earned $7.9 billion yearly in wages and benefits.

In the United Kingdom, it is estimated that the vaping industry has created 17,710 full-time jobs. At any given time, an Internet search will turn up many hundreds of open jobs in the vaping industry.

Source: Vapor Technology Association, UK Vaping Industry Association

How Much Money Has Big Tobacco Spent on Vaping?

Big Tobacco companies have spent at least $16.1 billion acquiring independent vaping brands over the years.

Some of the key acquisitions of independent vaping companies by Big Tobacco companies include:

• NJOY: Acquired by Altria in 2023 for $2.75 billion
• JUUL: Acquired by Altria in 2018 (minority stake) for $13 billion
• V2 Cigs: Acquired by JUUL in 2018 for $75 million
• Logic: Acquired by Japan Tobacco in 2015 for an undisclosed sum
• Green Smoke: Acquired by Altria in 2014 for $110 million
• Skycig: Acquired by Lorillard in 2013 for $37 million
• Blu: Acquired by Lorillard in 2012 for $135 million

In addition to the money spent on acquiring vaping brands, Big Tobacco companies have also spent many millions of dollars compiling premarket applications for the FDA. The very few premarket applications that the FDA has approved are all for vaping products owned by Big Tobacco companies.

Sources: Altria, CNN, Japan Tobacco, Wikipedia, Business Wire, Forbes, PR Newswire

Statistics About Vaping Devices and E-Liquids

How Many Vaping Devices and E-Liquid Flavors Are There?

There were at least 8,092,129 individual vaping devices, accessories and e-liquids on the market in the United States as of 2020.

That’s the number of premarket applications received by the FDA, nearly all of which were denied. Every e-liquid flavor and nicotine strength required a separate application. There are many, many other e-liquid flavors manufactured and sold outside the United States.

Source: CSP Daily News

How Much Nicotine Does a Bottle of E-Liquid Contain?

To find the total nicotine content of a bottle of e-liquid, multiply the volume of vape juice in the bottle by the nicotine strength.

For example, a 30 ml bottle of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 50 mg/ml contains 1,500 mg of nicotine. A 120 ml bottle of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 3 mg/ml contains 360 mg of nicotine.

How Much Nicotine Does a JUUL Pod Contain?

A standard JUUL pod made for the US market contains 0.7 ml of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 59 mg/ml for a total nicotine content of 41.3 mg.

JUUL pods are sold in varying nicotine strengths throughout the world.

How Much Nicotine Does an Elf Bar Contain?

• The Elf Bar 600 contains 2 ml of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 20 mg/ml for a total nicotine content of 40 mg.
• The Elf Bar BC5000 contains 13 ml of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 50 mg/ml for a total nicotine content of 650 mg.

How Much Nicotine Does a Puff Bar Contain?

• The Puff Bar Plus contains 2.5 ml of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 50 mg/ml for a total nicotine strength of 125 mg.
• The Puff Bar Flow contains 6.5 ml of e-liquid with a nicotine strength of 50 mg/ml for a total nicotine strength of 325 mg.

How Many Puffs of Vapor Are Equal to a Cigarette?

Approximately 12 puffs of vapor are equal to one cigarette.

On average, a smoker puffs on a cigarette 8-16 times before putting it out. With that in mind, you can expect to feel as satiated as you would have felt from smoking a cigarette after puffing on a vaping device approximately 12 times as long as the nicotine strength of the e-liquid is the right one for your needs.

Source: National Cancer Institute

Vaping Environmental Statistics

How Many Disposable Vapes Are Discarded Each Day?

Approximately 411,000 disposable vapes are discarded each day in the United States, and nearly 186,000 disposable vapes are thrown away each day in the United Kingdom.

The disposable vapes that are discarded each year contain enough lithium to make the batteries for thousands of electric vehicles, illustrating the need for better e-cigarette recycling programs.

Sources: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, BBC

How Many JUUL Pods Are Discarded Each Day?

In 2019, approximately 5.48 million JUUL pods were discarded each day.

Since the market share of the JUUL brand has been greatly eroded since then, it’s likely that fewer pods are discarded per day in 2023.

Source: Mic

Are Disposable Vapes Recyclable?

Some disposable vapes can be disassembled, making it possible to remove and recycle their batteries. Any company that recycles lithium-ion batteries should be able to handle the battery from a disposable vape.

Teen Vaping Statistics

How Many Teens Vape in the United States?

In the US National Youth Tobacco Survey released at the end of 2022, 14.1 percent of high school students and 3.3 percent of middle school students reported that they were current vapers. That’s a total of 2.52 million self-reported youth vapers in all.

Youth vaping in the United States has been on a downward trend following a period of extremely high vaping among students from 2018-2020. National Youth Tobacco Survey results from 2000-present appear to suggest that vaping has largely replaced smoking among teens. There is, however, some overlap in the data. In the 2022 National Youth Tobacco Survey, 3.5 percent of respondents reported using two different types of nicotine products, suggesting that some of the students who participated in the survey both vaped and smoked.

Sources: FDA, CDC

How Many Teens Vape in the European Union?

According to a 2020 survey of 12,167 teens aged 14-17 from several European nations, 6.6 percent of respondents vaped daily, weekly or monthly.

Respondents in the survey were from Ireland, Portugal, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Finland and the Netherlands. In the survey, the results had significant geographical variance. Students in Italy and Belgium had the highest rates of having ever tried vaping – 50 percent and 48 percent respectively – while students in Germany had the lowest rate at 23 percent.

Source: European Journal of Public Health

How Many Teens Vape in the United Kingdom?

As of 2022, 7.0 percent of teens aged 11-17 in the United Kingdom reported being current regular vapers.

In the survey, 15.8 percent of respondents claimed to have tried vaping at least once, which was an increase from 11.2 percent in the 2021 survey. However, vaping rates were extremely low among students who had never smoked cigarettes.

Source: ASH

How Many Teens Vape in Canada?

According to the 2018-19 Canadian Student Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs survey, 20 percent of students in grades 7-12 reported vaping within the 30 days prior to the survey.

This is the most recent data available.

Source: Government of Canada

How Many Teens Vape in Australia?

According to the Australian Alcohol and Drug Foundation, 14 percent of Australian teens aged 12-17 have tried vaping at least once. Of those, approximately 32 percent are regular vapers.

Source: Alcohol and Drug Foundation

How Many Teens Vape in New Zealand?

The daily vaping rate among teens in New Zealand is 9.6 percent.

This figure shows a marked increase over the 3.1 percent teen vaping rate reported in 2019. During that same period, however, the teen smoking rate dropped from 2 percent to 1.3 percent. The smoking rate among Māori teens dropped 40 percent from 2019 to 2021.

Source: ASH

Vape Battery Explosion Statistics

How Many Vape Batteries Have Exploded?

At least 316 vape battery explosions have been reported in the media around the world.

We compiled the first and most comprehensive public database of e-cigarette explosions but ceased updating the list when these types of events became extremely rare.

Source: eCig One