U.S. smoking rates drop to historic lows with just 11% of adults still smoking

Cigarette smoking among Americans has dropped to an unprecedented low, with only 11% of U.S. adults reporting that they have smoked in the past week, according to a recent Gallup poll.

Smoking is even less common among Gen Z, with just 6% of those under 30 saying they light up.

Gallup’s latest survey, conducted from July 1 to 21, reveals a significant decline in cigarette use compared to their first poll on the subject in 1944, when 41% of adults smoked.

This downward trend is striking, especially when compared to the 45% of Americans who smoked in the 1950s and the more than one-third who admitted to smoking in the 1980s.

Gallup attributes much of this shift to the decline in smoking among young people. In the early 2000s, around 35% of Americans under 30 reported smoking within the past week.

While younger Americans are now less likely than any other age group to smoke cigarettes, they are the most likely to use e-cigarettes, according to Gallup data. The survey found that 18% of adults aged 18 to 29 vape, with the rate decreasing significantly in older age groups, down to just 1% among those 65 and older.

The poll also highlighted a correlation between education and smoking habits, with only 5% of college graduates and 15% of non-graduates reporting smoking, based on data from 2022-2024.

The low smoking rates may be due to decades of scientific evidence and warnings about the dangers of smoking. Nearly 80% of American adults surveyed believe cigarettes are “very harmful,” while 57% say the same about e-cigarettes.

Most respondents also consider chewing tobacco “very harmful,” though fewer expressed the same concern about cigars, pipes, or nicotine pouches. However, at least 70% of Americans view these products as at least “somewhat harmful,” according to Gallup.

Interestingly, those who smoke are less likely than non-smokers to view cigarettes as harmful. While 80% of non-smokers consider cigarettes dangerous, only 58% of smokers share that belief.

Similarly, only 63% of e-cigarette users believe vaping is harmful, compared to 79% of non-vapers who think so, according to Gallup’s findings.