A new analysis of national survey data finds adult cigarette smoking in the U.S. fell below 10% in 2024 for the first time on record, even as millions still use tobacco in other forms and e-cigarette use remains common among young adults.
The study reports that 9.9% of U.S. adults said they smoked cigarettes in 2024, down from 10.8% in 2023, based on National Health Interview Survey responses. That shift pushed the adult smoking rate into single digits for the first time and brought policymakers closer to the Healthy People 2030 target of 6.1%.
“If this decline continues, the target might be met or exceeded by 2030,” the researchers wrote, noting that the change represents real progress but not the end of nicotine dependence. Even with the drop in cigarette smoking, roughly 25.2 million adults still smoke, making cigarettes the most common tobacco product in the country.
When all tobacco products are counted — cigarettes, cigars and e-cigarettes — nearly 47.7 million adults, or about 18.8% of the population, reported using at least one product. Those numbers underline that the landscape of nicotine use is shifting rather than disappearing, with combustible tobacco use falling while other products hold steady.
The researchers analyzed responses from more than 29,500 adults in 2023 and 32,600 adults in 2024 through NHIS, which is the most recent nationally representative household survey on adult tobacco use. Combustible tobacco use overall dropped to 12.6% in 2024 from 13.5% the year before, driven largely by the fall in cigarette smoking.
Despite the encouraging dip in cigarettes, the prevalence of e-cigarette and cigar use did not change meaningfully between 2023 and 2024, prompting calls for broader tobacco control. The authors wrote that the “lack of change in cigar and e-cigarette use calls for intensified implementation of comprehensive tobacco control policies addressing all products.”
The study also highlights stark disparities across demographic groups. Men reported much higher rates of any tobacco use, at just over 24%, compared with nearly 14% for women, and certain occupations such as agriculture, construction and manufacturing showed elevated use.
Certain social and economic groups had the highest concentrations of tobacco use, with people holding a GED reporting the largest share at 42.8%, and elevated rates among rural residents, low-income individuals and people with disabilities. Those patterns suggest that the gains in reducing cigarette smoking are not evenly experienced and targeted efforts are still needed.
Young adults are shifting toward vaping: nearly 15% of people ages 18 to 24 reported using e-cigarettes, while only 3.4% in that age group said they smoke cigarettes. That trend fuels concern about nicotine exposure among new users and points to a marketplace where vaping products remain widely available and popular with younger cohorts.
John Puls, a psychotherapist and addiction specialist, offered direct observations from his clinical work: “Most of my patients use e-cigarettes and various vape products,” he said. “They’re easier to conceal, can be used almost anywhere and deliver a much more powerful nicotine dose.” He added that cigarette smoking is “more socially unacceptable than it has ever been,” and noted, “I work with many patients who are addicted to nicotine, and the vast majority have never smoked a cigarette.”
Puls also warned about the nicotine concentration in some vape products compared with cigarettes, noting the difference in delivery and potency. He pointed out that some vape products can contain far higher milligram levels of nicotine — a factor that matters for addiction potential and for how quickly dependence can develop.
Public health authorities stress that no tobacco product is safe and that cigarette smoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. Ongoing measures such as smoke-free laws, higher tobacco taxes and expanded access to quitting support are still central to reducing overall tobacco use.
The study authors acknowledged several limitations, including how smokeless tobacco has been defined across survey years, the reliance on self-reported data and reduced precision for some smaller subgroups. Those caveats mean the reported declines are encouraging but should be interpreted with an understanding of survey constraints and changing product definitions.
