Percentage of European Adults Over 15 Who Smoke

Credit amazing__mapsThe map above was created by the Amazing Maps team and shows smoking rates for those 15 and over across Europe.

And the one thing that really jumps out at me is France really living up to its stenotype.

You can see how this compares to other countries in the world in the table below:

Entity	Share of adults who smoke or use tobacco (age-standardized)
Afghanistan	22.7%
Africa	11.5%
Albania	21.9%
Algeria	21.2%
Andorra	36.3%
Argentina	23.8%
Armenia	24.9%
Asia	24.2%
Australia	13.1%
Austria	24.9%
Azerbaijan	19.6%
Bahamas	11.3%
Bahrain	15.0%
Bangladesh	32.9%
Barbados	7.0%
Belarus	30.1%
Belgium	26.7%
Belize	8.8%
Benin	6.3%
Bhutan	18.7%
Bolivia	12.4%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	36.2%
Botswana	18.7%
Brazil	12.2%
Brunei	16.4%
Bulgaria	39.5%
Burkina Faso	14.3%
Burundi	11.2%
Cambodia	17.2%
Cameroon	6.5%
Canada	12.0%
Cape Verde	11.0%
Chad	7.4%
Chile	28.7%
China	23.4%
Colombia	8.2%
Comoros	17.2%
Congo	15.4%
Cook Islands	27.0%
Costa Rica	8.9%
Cote d'Ivoire	8.8%
Croatia	37.0%
Cuba	17.4%
Cyprus	35.6%
Czechia	29.9%
Democratic Republic of Congo	12.2%
Denmark	16.2%
Dominican Republic	10.5%
East Timor	38.7%
Ecuador	10.2%
Egypt	24.7%
El Salvador	8.9%
Estonia	28.3%
Eswatini	9.5%
Ethiopia	5.2%
Europe	25.9%
Fiji	27.6%
Finland	22.3%
France	34.6%
Gambia	10.5%
Georgia	31.8%
Germany	21.3%
Ghana	3.4%
Greece	32.8%
Guatemala	11.9%
Guinea-Bissau	8.2%
Guyana	11.1%
Haiti	8.1%
High-income countries	23.2%
Honduras	12.3%
Hungary	32.2%
Iceland	9.4%
India	24.3%
Indonesia	38.2%
Iran	13.3%
Iraq	19.2%
Ireland	19.3%
Israel	20.4%
Italy	22.4%
Jamaica	9.7%
Japan	19.2%
Jordan	35.6%
Kazakhstan	22.2%
Kenya	10.7%
Kiribati	39.7%
Kuwait	19.9%
Kyrgyzstan	27.3%
Laos	27.2%
Latvia	33.9%
Lebanon	34.3%
Lesotho	24.3%
Liberia	8.2%
Lithuania	31.4%
Low-income countries	12.1%
Lower-middle-income countries	21.7%
Luxembourg	23.0%
Madagascar	26.8%
Malawi	9.7%
Malaysia	22.0%
Maldives	26.3%
Mali	8.0%
Malta	24.7%
Marshall Islands	29.8%
Mauritania	9.5%
Mauritius	20.9%
Mexico	14.9%
Moldova	29.7%
Mongolia	29.5%
Montenegro	32.0%
Morocco	13.0%
Myanmar	44.4%
Namibia	14.1%
Nauru	48.3%
Nepal	28.3%
Netherlands	21.3%
New Zealand	12.2%
Niger	7.7%
Nigeria	3.3%
North America	19.8%
North Korea	16.5%
Norway	14.2%
Oceania	19.1%
Oman	8.4%
Pakistan	18.9%
Palau	17.3%
Panama	5.2%
Papua New Guinea	39.6%
Paraguay	10.7%
Peru	7.1%
Philippines	20.4%
Poland	23.6%
Portugal	25.6%
Qatar	12.5%
Romania	30.0%
Russia	29.2%
Rwanda	14.3%
Saint Lucia	13.8%
Samoa	22.5%
Sao Tome and Principe	7.8%
Saudi Arabia	14.9%
Senegal	6.5%
Serbia	39.5%
Seychelles	20.2%
Sierra Leone	12.9%
Singapore	16.4%
Slovakia	32.4%
Slovenia	20.1%
Solomon Islands	36.9%
South Africa	20.7%
South America	13.4%
South Korea	20.0%
Spain	28.4%
Sri Lanka	19.5%
Sweden	22.7%
Switzerland	25.5%
Tanzania	9.3%
Thailand	19.2%
Togo	6.4%
Tonga	31.3%
Tunisia	20.5%
Turkey	30.5%
Turkmenistan	5.6%
Tuvalu	33.7%
Uganda	7.5%
Ukraine	24.9%
United Arab Emirates	9.0%
United Kingdom	14.2%
United States	24.3%
Upper-middle-income countries	22.5%
Uruguay	20.5%
Uzbekistan	16.7%
Vietnam	22.5%
World	21.7%
Yemen	21.4%
Zambia	14.6%
Zimbabwe	11.3%

The data for the map and the table above comes from the World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2024) and is for 2022.

Why does France have such a higher smoking rate than other Western European countries?

France’s relatively high smoking rate compared to other Western European countries results from a combination of historical, cultural, and socioeconomic reasons:

Historical and Cultural Acceptance

• Cultural symbolism: Smoking has traditionally been perceived in France as sophisticated, chic, and socially acceptable, reinforced by film, art, and popular culture.
• Social rituals: Smoking often accompanies social interactions like café culture, meals, and social gatherings.

Policy and Enforcement

• Delayed strict regulations: Compared to other Western European nations, France was slower to implement comprehensive tobacco-control measures (such as indoor smoking bans, advertising restrictions, and high taxation), allowing habits to persist longer.
• Weaker enforcement: Early enforcement of regulations was less stringent, allowing smoking norms to endure.

Economic Factors

• Pricing and taxation: Historically lower cigarette prices, especially relative to purchasing power, made smoking economically accessible for many years. Although this has changed recently, the habit persisted due to earlier affordability.

Industry Influence

• Strong tobacco lobbying: France historically had influential tobacco industry lobbying, delaying aggressive anti-smoking campaigns and regulations.

Youth Culture

• Early initiation: Youth initiation rates have historically been high, perpetuating the cycle through peer influence and normalization among younger demographics.

Recent Shifts:

France has increasingly tackled this issue through:

• Raising tobacco taxes significantly.
• Expanding anti-smoking campaigns.
• Introducing plain packaging legislation.

These recent policies have begun to reduce smoking rates, though historical factors mean that France’s rates remain relatively higher compared to its Western European counterparts.

Which country surprises you the most (either higher or lower)?