Shmmokin’

Globally, rates of tobacco use have been falling for decades.

Today, it is estimated that one-in-five people around the world use tobacco products, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO).

That’s still enough people to have a sizable impact on both global healthcare and the environment. And the prevalence of tobacco use by country, and by sex, varies widely.

In the following chart, Visual Capitalist’s Nick Routley shows current tobacco use in selected countries around the world using WHO estimates for 2022.

Which People Smoke the Most?

Below we examine the entire dataset of global countries by 2022 tobacco use. Estimates are of people aged 15 years and older and include both smoked and smokeless tobacco (including vaping). Countries that had no data for 2022 have been omitted.

In almost every country, males use tobacco more than females. Globally, 36% of men are tobacco users compared to just 8% of women.

Country	Total Prevalence (%)	Male (%)	Female (%)
🇦🇫 Afghanistan	22.1	38.3	5.9
🇦🇱 Albania	22.4	38.7	6.6
🇩🇿 Algeria	21.6	41.9	0.7
🇦🇩 Andorra	33.6	33.3	33.8
🇦🇷 Argentina	23.1	28.2	18.1
🇦🇲 Armenia	22.5	49.3	1.7
🇦🇺 Australia	12.5	14.8	10.3
🇦🇹 Austria	22.0	23.7	20.5
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	19.3	39.6	0.1
🇧🇸 Bahamas	10.7	20.6	2.1
🇧🇭 Bahrain	18.1	25.7	4.9
🇧🇩 Bangladesh	31.1	48.9	14.2
🇧🇧 Barbados	6.5	11.7	1.7
🇧🇾 Belarus	27.9	47.2	12.0
🇧🇪 Belgium	24.7	27.4	22.1
🇧🇿 Belize	8.7	15.5	1.9
🇧🇯 Benin	5.5	9.5	1.7
🇧🇹 Bhutan	19.6	27.2	11.0
🇧🇴 Bolivia	12.2	20.4	4.1
🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina	35.1	41.0	29.5
🇧🇼 Botswana	18.1	30.2	6.5
🇧🇷 Brazil	12.3	15.7	9.1
🇧🇳 Brunei Darussalam	17.1	31.3	2.2
🇧🇬 Bulgaria	34.0	38.1	30.2
🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	13.5	21.7	5.5
🇧🇮 Burundi	10.0	15.2	5.0
🇨🇻 Cabo Verde	10.5	16.2	5.0
🇰🇭 Cambodia	16.1	27.3	5.5
🇨🇲 Cameroon	5.6	10.2	1.1
🇨🇦 Canada	11.4	13.7	9.2
🇹🇩 Chad	6.8	12.3	1.4
🇨🇱 Chile	28.2	30.6	25.8
🇨🇳 China	24.9	47.3	2.0
🇨🇴 Colombia	8.2	12.1	4.5
🇰🇲 Comoros	16.2	26.2	6.2
🇨🇬 Congo	15.0	28.2	2.0
🇨🇰 Cook Islands	25.5	30.3	21.4
🇨🇷 Costa Rica	8.8	13.2	4.5
🇨🇮 Cöte d’Ivoire	8.6	16.4	0.7
🇭🇷 Croatia	32.6	34.2	31.1
🇨🇺 Cuba	18.5	26.9	10.4
🇨🇾 Cyprus	34.0	46.0	22.1
🇨🇿 Czechia	27.5	31.7	23.3
🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo	11.1	19.9	2.6
🇩🇰 Denmark	16.2	16.4	16.0
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	10.2	14.0	6.5
🇪🇨 Ecuador	10.1	17.6	2.6
🇪🇬 Egypt	24.7	48.9	0.3
🇸🇻 El Salvador	8.3	15.6	1.9
🇪🇪 Estonia	25.6	32.9	19.1
🇸🇿 Eswatini	8.6	16.2	1.4
🇪🇹 Ethiopia	4.6	7.8	1.4
🇫🇯 Fiji	27.3	41.7	13.1
🇫🇮 Finland	19.6	23.9	15.4
🇫🇷 France	29.2	31.3	27.3
🇬🇲 Gambia	9.6	18.7	0.6
🇬🇪 Georgia	29.0	54.7	7.1
🇩🇪 Germany	18.8	21.3	16.4
🇬🇭 Ghana	3.1	5.9	0.3
🇬🇷 Greece	29.6	33.1	26.3
🇬🇹 Guatemala	12.0	22.7	1.7
🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	7.5	14.8	0.6
🇬🇾 Guyana	10.5	19.3	2.2
🇭🇹 Haiti	7.3	12.6	2.3
🇭🇳 Honduras	12.2	22.7	1.7
🇭🇺 Hungary	29.4	34.7	24.5
🇮🇸 Iceland	9.4	9.4	9.4
🇮🇳 India	23.9	36.8	10.4
🇮🇩 Indonesia	38.5	73.6	3.4
🇮🇷 Iran (Islamic Republic of)	13.9	24.8	3.1
🇮🇶 Iraq	18.7	36.0	1.6
🇮🇪 Ireland	18.2	20.5	16.1
🇮🇱 Israel	19.8	26.4	13.3
🇮🇹 Italy	20.4	24.1	16.8
🇯🇲 Jamaica	9.5	15.8	3.5
🇯🇵 Japan	16.8	26.5	7.7
🇯🇴 Jordan	36.3	57.8	13.4
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	21.7	38.2	6.9
🇰🇪 Kenya	9.2	16.6	2.1
🇰🇮 Kiribati	38.2	51.6	25.7
🇰🇼 Kuwait	22.7	35.6	2.1
🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan	26.4	51.3	3.3
🇱🇦 Lao People’s Democratic Republic	25.8	43.2	8.4
🇱🇻 Latvia	30.3	45.6	17.2
🇱🇧 Lebanon	34.0	43.1	25.7
🇱🇸 Lesotho	22.9	42.0	4.8
🇱🇷 Liberia	7.1	12.5	1.7
🇱🇹 Lithuania	27.9	40.1	17.3
🇱🇺 Luxembourg	21.8	23.3	20.3
🇲🇬 Madagascar	25.7	41.7	9.9
🇲🇼 Malawi	7.1	13.0	1.7
🇲🇾 Malaysia	22.6	43.8	0.7
🇲🇻 Maldives	29.3	43.6	10.1
🇲🇱 Mali	7.6	14.4	0.7
🇲🇹 Malta	23.2	25.5	20.6
🇲🇭 Marshall Islands	30.4	51.8	8.6
🇲🇷 Mauritania	9.4	17.2	2.0
🇲🇺 Mauritius	20.0	38.1	2.8
🇲🇽 Mexico	14.6	23.1	6.9
🇲🇳 Mongolia	29.3	52.6	7.3
🇲🇪 Montenegro	32.1	30.9	33.2
🇲🇦 Morocco	13.1	25.3	1.0
🇲🇲 Myanmar	43.9	69.4	19.2
🇳🇦 Namibia	12.5	21.3	4.7
🇳🇷 Nauru	49.5	50.3	48.7
🇳🇵 Nepal	24.9	42.7	9.4
🇳🇱 Netherlands (Kingdom of the)	20.1	22.5	17.7
🇳🇿 New Zealand	11.4	12.7	10.2
🇳🇪 Niger	7.7	14.0	1.3
🇳🇬 Nigeria	2.9	5.4	0.4
🇳🇴 Norway	14.0	14.8	13.2
🇴🇲 Oman	11.0	17.4	0.4
🇵🇰 Pakistan	16.9	27.7	6.2
🇵🇼 Palau	17.0	26.3	7.3
🇵🇦 Panama	5.1	8.4	1.9
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	40.4	55.4	24.9
🇵🇾 Paraguay	10.6	17.4	3.8
🇵🇪 Peru	7.0	11.6	2.6
🇵🇭 Philippines	20.4	36.2	4.3
🇵🇱 Poland	23.2	27.6	19.1
🇵🇹 Portugal	20.9	27.1	15.5
🇶🇦 Qatar	18.8	24.6	2.3
🇰🇷 Republic of Korea	18.9	32.7	5.4
🇲🇩 Republic of Moldova	27.8	52.7	6.3
🇷🇴 Romania	27.5	37.4	18.5
🇷🇺 Russian Federation	27.2	42.0	14.8
🇷🇼 Rwanda	12.0	17.7	6.7
🇱🇨 Saint Lucia	13.6	24.8	3.0
🇼🇸 Samoa	22.2	31.0	13.2
🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe	7.1	12.6	1.8
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	17.4	28.4	2.1
🇸🇳 Senegal	6.0	11.7	0.6
🇷🇸 Serbia	36.6	38.8	34.6
🇸🇨 Seychelles	20.8	34.6	5.7
🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	11.4	17.3	5.5
🇸🇬 Singapore	16.4	27.9	4.0
🇸🇰 Slovakia	30.2	35.4	25.4
🇸🇮 Slovenia	18.1	20.2	15.9
🇸🇧 Solomon Islands	37.6	55.3	19.6
🇿🇦 South Africa	20.3	35.1	6.5
🇪🇸 Spain	24.9	27.5	22.5
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	19.1	37.8	2.4
🇸🇪 Sweden	22.1	28.3	15.9
🇨🇭 Switzerland	23.3	26.3	20.4
🇹🇭 Thailand	18.9	37.7	1.8
🇹🇱 Timor-Leste	37.6	64.5	9.8
🇹🇬 Togo	5.6	10.2	0.9
🇹🇴 Tonga	30.7	46.8	15.5
🇹🇳 Tunisia	20.1	39.7	1.6
🇹🇷 Türkiye	30.7	41.9	19.6
🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	5.4	10.6	0.5
🇹🇻 Tuvalu	33.8	48.3	19.0
🇺🇬 Uganda	5.3	9.0	1.8
🇺🇦 Ukraine	22.0	38.3	8.5
🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates	11.7	15.5	2.5
🇬🇧 United Kingdom	13.1	15.0	11.4
🇹🇿 United Republic of Tanzania	7.5	13.1	2.2
🇺🇸 United States of America	23.0	28.6	17.5
🇺🇾 Uruguay	19.3	23.0	16.0
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	16.2	31.8	1.0
🇻🇳 Viet Nam	22.8	44.3	2.2
🇾🇪 Yemen	20.8	33.7	7.9
🇿🇲 Zambia	12.0	21.8	2.7
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	9.2	19.0	0.8

From a regional perspective, we can see many countries in Europe and Asia have higher rates of tobacco use. Indonesia and Myanmar specifically have some of the highest tobacco use rates in the world, with 73.6% of Indonesian men estimated to smoke or use tobacco.

In many Asian countries we also see a greater difference between male and female smokers compared to the rest of the world. In China for example, 47.3% of males are estimated to use tobacco compared to just 2.0% of females.

On the other hand, the Americas and especially Africa have a lower prevalence of tobacco use. Nigeria at 2.9% had the lowest rate of tobacco use in the world in 2022.