Statistical article
Adult smoking habits in the UK : 2023
Cigarette smoking habits among adults in the UK, including how many people smoke, differences between population groups, changes over time and use of e-cigarettes.
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Headline facts and figures
6.0 million
people smoked cigarettes (aged 18 and above) in the UK in 2023
25 to 34 age
highest propotion of current smokers (14%)
5.1 million
adults aged 16 years and over uses an e-cigatette daily or occasionally
How to use these statistics
Important information:
These statistics rely on data from the Annual Population Survey (APS) and the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey (OPN).
With these statistics, you can:
- find smoking estimates, all of which fall within a range (or confidence interval) that shows uncertainty around the estimate
- compare trends over time, but be aware that some decreases, especially in 2020, could be because of sample sizes and methods changes
- examine trends in smoking habits by local authority, but we advise focusing on long-term trends because short-term trends can vary more
With these statistics, you cannot:
- compare smoking in the UK from the APS with smoking and vaping in Great Britain from the OPN: the surveys cover geographical areas and define a current smoke differently
Find more guidance in Data sources, quality and methods.