In July, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released data from the 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Mental Health (NSDUH). This annual, nationally representative survey measures substance use and mental health indicators, and it provides critical insights into both current use rates of tobacco and nicotine products and trends over the past few years. 

According to survey data, in 2025, 22.1% of people aged 12 or older reported current use of any nicotine product. By specific product, of people aged 12 or older: 

• 16.2% used any tobacco product 
• 12.4% smoked cigarettes 
• 10.1% vaped nicotine  
• 3.4% smoked cigars 
• 2.5% used smokeless tobacco 
• 0.6% used pipe tobacco  

While rates of cigarette smoking have been on the decline for decades – now down to 12.4% in 2025, a decline from 16.0% in 2021 –  use rates of other nicotine products persist, with 1 in 5 people still using any tobacco or nicotine product.  

The data shows some encouraging trends, including declines in: 

• current tobacco product use among 12–17-year-olds – down to 2.0% from 2.9% in 2021  
• current use of nicotine products, tobacco, cigarettes, and vaping products among 18–25-year-olds  
• past year initiation of nicotine vaping across all age groups, including a decrease among 12–17-year-olds  

However, 1 in 5 people still using any tobacco or nicotine product is far too many, and the data also illuminates a number of concerns.  

Underage use. Of particular concern are the rates of underage use of tobacco and nicotine products. In 2025, 12.1% of 12–20-year-olds reported current use of any nicotine product, a total of 10.6% specifically reported currently vaping nicotine, and 3.4% reported currently smoking cigarettes (unchanged since 2021), despite the federal legal age of sale of 21 for all tobacco and nicotine products. In addition, while rates of initiation for vaping nicotine decreased across all age groups from 2022 to 2025, of the 4.2 million people who initiated vaping nicotine in 2025, one third were under age 21. These numbers indicate that there remains important work to do to ensure youth are not getting access to addictive and harmful products. Strong tobacco retailer licensing laws are a great way to hold retailers accountable and reduce sales to underage youth.  

Dual Use. Also concerning are the continued rates of “dual use” wherein people both vape nicotine and use another tobacco product. Among people ages 12 or older who use tobacco or nicotine products, 18.6% reported dual use of nicotine vapes and another tobacco product. Similarly, 13.4% of people ages 12 or older who use tobacco products reported dual use of cigarettes and another tobacco product. This practice exposes people using the products to a broader range of toxicants and can ultimately be worse for health than use of a single product [1] as well as lead to greater nicotine dependence. [1, 2] 

Nicotine dependence. While rates of initiation of nicotine vaping across age groups may have decreased, the 2025 rate of current nicotine vaping among people ages 12 and older (10.1%) represents an increase from 8.3% in 2022. This may be a sign of increasing nicotine dependence, with more people who once experimented with nicotine progressing to regular use.  Many newer nicotine vaping products contain a high concentration of nicotine, and cheap, flavored vapes are also increasing in both volume and the total milligrams of nicotine sold per product, making nicotine dependence more likely. [3]  

Nicotine pouches. It is also important to note that “tobacco” as defined in the survey includes cigarettes, smokeless tobacco (snuff, dip, chewing tobacco, snus), cigars, and pipe tobacco. The survey does not specifically ask participants about nicotine pouch use. These pouches, which other research has shown to be increasing in popularity particularly among youth and young adults, could be considered a smokeless tobacco product, but unlike conventional smokeless products, do not contain any tobacco leaf. Instead, they consist of a nicotine powder, which may be either derived from tobacco or synthetically derived. These products were not as popular in 2021, the baseline year for the NSDUH, but sales more than tripled between 2023 and 2026. They have also become the second most commonly used tobacco or nicotine product among youth, with rates quadrupling to 3.5% between 2022 and 2025. Use of these products is an important trend to monitor, as is ensuring these products are well regulated to prevent future youth initiation and reduce dependence among people who currently use these or other tobacco and nicotine products.  

The good news is that we know what works to reduce tobacco and nicotine use. In addition to the core, evidence-based tobacco control strategies of raising tobacco prices, smokefree strategies, hard-hitting media campaigns, and ensuring access to cessation resources, states and local jurisdictions can employ strategies focused on the retail environment to further reduce both overall tobacco use and differences in tobacco-related health outcomes This includes reducing tobacco and nicotine product availability, addressing pricing and promotion, and prohibiting discounts, addressing advertising and displays in stores, raising the age of sale, and implementing strong retail licensure strategies.[4]  

Find the full report and other data highlights here.  

Mollie Mayfield, a Senior Policy Analyst at Counter Tools, has a decade of experience working on commercial tobacco prevention and control in the retail environment. In that time she has worked with partners across the country, providing technical assistance, training, consultation, and subject matter expertise on policy, systems, and environmental solutions for improving the health of the retail environment and advancing health equity, and she has served as the managing editor of CounterTobacco.org. She received her Master of Public Health in Health Behavior from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her BA in Psychology with a concentration in Community and Global Health from Macalester College.

References 

1. Glantz, S., Nguyen, N., & Oliveira da Silva, A. (2024). Population-Based Disease Odds for E-Cigarettes and Dual Use versus Cigarettes. NEJM Evidence, 3(3), evidoa2300229-evidoa2300229. Report #: EVIDoa2300229. Pubmed ID: 38411454. http://dx.doi.org/10.1056/evidoa2300229 Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7wq2q169 
2. Snell LM, Barnes AJ, Nicksic NE. A Longitudinal Analysis of Nicotine Dependence and Transitions From Dual Use of Cigarettes and Electronic Cigarettes: Evidence From Waves 1-3 of the PATH Study. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2020 Sep;81(5):595-603. doi: 10.15288/jsad.2020.81.595. PMID: 33028472; PMCID: PMC8076487. 
3. Ali F, Diaz M, Armour B …Trends in U.S. E-cigarette Sales Measured in Milligrams of Nicotine, 2019–2024 American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2025; 68, 1173-1178 
4. Kong AY, King BABoosting the Tobacco Control Vaccine: recognizing the role of the retail environment in addressing tobacco use and disparitiesTobacco Control 2021;30:e162-e168.