Smoking rates hit a historic low in 2025 survey
Australia’s smoking rates fell to 5.6% of people aged 14 and over in 2025, down from 8.3% in 2022-23 and well below the national target of 10% or fewer adults smoking by 2025.
The National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2025 also found 68.7% of Australians aged 14 and over have never smoked, the highest level recorded in the survey.
The survey, conducted every three years, collected data from more than 17,500 people aged 14 and over between June and December 2025.
Cancer Council Australia CEO Jacinta Reddan said the results showed tobacco controls were still working despite debate over illicit tobacco. “This survey shows that Australia’s suite of world-leading tobacco controls is working to save Australian lives. Plain packaging, taxation, advertising restrictions and sustained public education on the harmful effects of smoking, which still kills 66 Australians every day, have seen smoking drop to among the lowest in the world,” she said.
Vaping and illicit products
Among people aged 18 to 24, current vaping fell from 20.6% to 14%, while daily vaping was stable across all age groups.
The survey also recorded illicit nicotine pouches and traditional snus for the first time. It found 8.4% of 18 to 24-year-olds had used pouches in the past year and 3.8% had used snus.
At the same time, 34% of people who currently smoke reported recent illicit tobacco use in 2025, up from 16.7% in 2022-23. Of those who bought branded illicit tobacco, 57% purchased it from a tobacconist.
Chair of Cancer Council’s National Tobacco Issues Committee Alecia Brooks said the rise in pouches and snus showed enforcement and demand reduction needed to work together. “These products are illegal to sell in Australia, so a tax cut on legal tobacco does nothing to touch them. The only way to combat this is the same way we need to combat illicit tobacco: sustained, demand reduction control policies alongside enforcement, supply-chain disruption and closing off the retail channels illegally selling them in the first place.”
Cancer Council Australia is calling for proven tobacco control measures to be maintained, more investment in public education campaigns, national minimum licensing standards for tobacco retailers and wholesalers, more enforcement resources targeting illicit supply chains, and continued support for people trying to quit.
