Here's How Much Vaping Really Costs The Average American

If you are worried about the cost of smoking cigarettes and have switched to vaping, you might be surprised to find a difference impacting your wallet. According to Vaporesso, initial starting costs can range from $20 to $100 for a vaping starter kit that comes with a battery, a tank, and a charger. Then, you must purchase e-liquid, with refillable vape pods typically lasting between three to five days, based on how frequently a user vapes. 

Vaping has several price points depending on the kind of vape, which VapeJuice.com broke down into three categories: disposable vapes that cost an average of $12 to $15 each, pod vapes -– which use refillable e-liquid capsules –- that go for roughly $20 to $40 each, and high end vape mods that start at $40 and go up in price due to higher daily usage of e-liquid and more operating wattage. Americans who use a disposable vape five days a week will spend around $876 a year, while those who purchase higher end kits and refill a pod or mod every three days might spend closer to $5,000 annually.

Meanwhile, the average cost of a pack of cigarettes is close to $8 per pack as of October 2024, according to Newsweek. Smokers who go through one pack a day will end up spending almost $2,920 annually. Anyone looking to stop making bad money habits before you go broke might consider switching from cigarettes to vaping in order to save money.

In addition to cigarettes and vaping devices being one of the things you should stop buying to save more money, there are other associated costs that can come with the behavior. It's not just the cost of buying an actual vaping device, and e-liquid, that can add up over time, but also the emotional and financial toll that vaping can take on your health. Vaping and smoking cigarettes are both ways to consume nicotine, which can end up causing short and long term health issues that might cost you money in the end. The American Council of Science and Health found that, in 2022, the healthcare costs per-user expenditure for people who vape came to an average of $1,796, while dual vape and cigarette smokers paid $2,050.

According to a study by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, vaping rates among American youth are going down — with half a million fewer young e-cigarette users from 2023 to 2024. If this trend continues, vaping costs could someday be a thing of the past.