Smoking rates fall to historic low across Australia despite the rise of illicit tobacco

Smokers are increasingly using illicit tobacco, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s national drug survey has found. Photograph: Peter Dazeley/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Smokers are increasingly using illicit tobacco, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s national drug survey has found. Photograph: Peter Dazeley/Getty Images Smoking rates fall to historic low across Australia despite the rise of illicit tobacco Long-running AIHW survey shows daily rates of smoking dropped to 5.6% last year – down from 8.3% two years ago Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Daily smoking rates have fallen to a historic low and are tracking well ahead of national targets, while vaping rates have stabilised, according to the largest nationally representative survey on tobacco use. But those who do smoke are increasingly using illicit tobacco, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s (AIHW) National Drug Strategy Household Survey also found. Daily tobacco smoking among those aged 14 and above dropped to 5.6% in 2025, down significantly from 8.3% in 2022–23, the data shows. The federal government’s National Tobacco Strategy 2023–2030 had aimed for a national daily smoking prevalence of less than 10% by 2025, and now has a target of 5% or less by 2030. The Cancer Council Australia’s CEO, Jacinta Reddan, said the data also showed more than two-thirds of Australians aged 14 and above had never smoked – which was a historic high. View image in fullscreen Illustration: AIHW More than 17,500 people aged 14 and over across the country took part in the survey, held from June to December 2025. Of those who reported that they smoke, 34% said they had recently used illicit tobacco, up from 16.7% in 2022-23. Just over 22% of smokers said they had purchased branded illicit tobacco – without plain packaging and graphic health warnings – in the previous three months, while one in six said they smoke unbranded products (tobacco or cigarettes sold loose, often in plastic bags). More than half (57%) of those who purchased branded illicit tobacco reported buying it from a tobacconist. There have been previous reports that rising illicit use indicated Australians were not quitting smoking tobacco. Many of the reports were based on wastewater data provided to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which reported overall nicotine use, including from vapes, pouches and smoking cessation products. Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email The AIHW found overall nicotine use was declining. The proportion of people using any nicotine in 2025 fell to 15.2%, from 17.4% in 2022-23. Cancer Council Australia praised some of the work done so far to bring smoking rates down. “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,” Reddan said. The Public Health Association