Becoming a "tobacco-free" country has been a successful gamble for the Nordic nation, with less than 5% of its adult population smoking daily, according to a report published by the Swedish Council for Alcohol and Other Drugs Information. The proportion of people who smoke every day has fallen from 16% in 2003 to 4,8% in 2025.
The report also specifies that 10% of adults say they smoked at least one cigarette in the previous month. Women aged 50 to 84 now constitute the group with the highest rate of daily smokers, at 6%.
Snus and electronic cigarettes are experiencing strong growth.
While traditional smoking has declined sharply, nicotine consumption remains high in the country. Approximately a quarter of the population uses nicotine products daily, including snus (oral tobacco placed under the lip) or electronic cigarettes.
Snus is experiencing spectacular growth in Sweden, particularly the tobacco-free "white" version, launched in 2016 and often flavored. According to the report, sales of white snus jumped 180% between 2021 and 2024, while sales of vaping liquids increased by 640% over the same period.
A model observed by several countries
Sweden's success in combating tobacco smoking is largely attributed to the widespread use of snus, which was legalized in the country thanks to a waiver granted upon its accession to the European Union. However, tobacco-containing snus has remained banned in the rest of the EU since 1992.
Several countries, such as Ireland and New Zealand, have also set a target of less than 5% of daily smokers, a threshold now adopted by the World Health Organization to define a tobacco-free country. Health authorities, however, reiterate that new nicotine-based products are not without health risks and remain insufficiently studied.
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