Fewer Australians are smoking daily than ever before as new data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) shows tobacco control measures are working.
Despite calls to walk away from strong tobacco control measures, the AIHW National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2025: Tobacco, e-cigarettes and other nicotine insights released today, has revealed a 20 per cent fall in the number of people aged 14 and over who smoke daily.
Just 5.6 per cent of Australians aged 14 and over smoke daily and 68.7 per cent have never smoked at all.
This is a clear sign that Australia’s tobacco control measures are working.
TSANZ has maintained that the best way to combat the illicit tobacco market is to reduce the number of people smoking altogether and today’s data supports that approach.
Encouragingly, after a rise in 2022-23, the data also reveals both smoking and e-cigarette use among those aged 18-24 has fallen. In 2022-23, 20.6 per cent of young people used e-cigarettes and 9.3 per cent smoked, in 2025 this was down to 14 per cent and 6.1 per cent, respectively.
Despite overall falls in tobacco and e-cigarette use, those smokers who used illicit tobacco recently has more than doubled to 34 per cent.
The combination of falling smoking rates and increasing use of illicit tobacco among those still smoking shows that effective tobacco control measures are working, but stronger enforcement is needed to crackdown on the illicit trade.
The Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand CEO, Vincent So, said these results show Australia’s commitment to effective tobacco control measures is working.
“Tobacco control measures like plain packaging, support for quitting, and the tobacco excise are doing what they were designed to do and driving tobacco and e-cigarette use down,” Mr So said.
Mr So rejected calls to walk back tobacco control measures as an attempt to curtail the illicit tobacco market.
“Despite the noise, now is not the time to walk away from effective public health policies that continue to deliver for the public health and welfare of Australians,” Mr So said.
“What we need now is effective enforcement including through enhanced powers for suspension and closure of dodgy retailers, strengthened retail licensing requirements and capped tobacco retail license numbers.”
TSANZ welcomes the recent survey results as a much-needed public reminder that Australia’s world-leading tobacco control measures are working and that fewer Australians are smoking than ever before.
The National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2025: Tobacco, e-cigarettes and other nicotine insights is now available online.
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About TSANZ
The Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ) is the peak professional body representing more than 1,800 respiratory health professionals across medicine, nursing, allied health, and research. TSANZ provides evidence-based advice, delivers professional training, and supports research to improve outcomes in lung health across Australia and New Zealand.
Contact details:
Liam Kiss
Senior Adviser (Policy and Media)
Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand
[email protected]
+61 2 9170 2620
