Sweden can now lay claim to being a smoke-free country, with new statistics showing that daily smoking dropped to 3.7 percent last year.

Since 2013, smoking rates in Sweden have been cut roughly in half, with both daily and occasional smoking falling across all age groups, according to the latest report from the Swedish Council for Information on Alcohol and Other Drugs (CAN).

The CAN report also shows that snus use in Sweden has risen from 13 percent to 18 percent since 2013, closely mirroring the decline in smoking. The majority of users consume snus daily, suggesting that many former smokers have fully transitioned away from cigarettes.

Nicotine substitution in concert with restrictions

Daily smoking rates in Sweden are now lowest among those aged 18–29 (2.9 percent), while snus use (both daily and occasional) is highest in the same group (29 percent). 

“Sweden’s success isn’t only about restrictions, it’s about substitution,” says Patrik Strömer, Secretary General of the Association of Swedish Snus Manufacturers. 

“We have given adult smokers access to less harmful alternatives like snus and nicotine pouches. That’s made all the difference when you compare Sweden’s success with other EU countries’ struggles to bring down smoking rates as quickly.”

The shift from cigarettes to snus and nicotine pouches is particularly pronounced among women aged 18-29. While smoking (daily and occasional) has fallen from 19 to 6 percent, the proportion of daily snus use has increased from 6 to 17 percent. 

Alternatives key to smoke-free success

Strömer believes the trend further demonstrates the importance of allowing consumers to make informed choices. Previously, Sweden stood out as one of the few countries where more women smoked than men, as men preferred to consume nicotine in the form of snus.

In 2004, 18.3 percent of women in Sweden were daily smokers, compared to only 13.8 percent of men, according to official statistics from the Public Health Agency of Sweden (Folkhälsomyndigheten). That gap started to close after the introduction of tobacco-free nicotine pouches, referred to in Sweden as “white snus”.

By 2020, daily smoking had reached gender parity in Sweden, dropping to 6.7 percent among women and 6.6 percent among men.

“When people are given realistic alternatives, they move away from cigarettes,” he says. 

“Other countries have focused almost entirely on limiting tobacco use, but without offering viable substitutes. Sweden shows that harm reduction works in practice.”

Sweden’s smoke-free journey continues

Sweden’s progress toward becoming the first EU country to meet the WHO definition of smoke-free has gained momentum in recent years.

According to official public health statistics, Sweden has had two smoke-free generations since 2022, when both 30-44 year olds and 16-29 year olds had daily smoking rates below 5 percent.

In 2024, figures from the public health agency revealed that daily smoking had dropped to 4.6 percent among Swedish-born adults. 

While Strömer welcomes the latest figures from CAN, he is cautious about proclaiming Sweden smoke-free.

“It’s certainly encouraging to see the figures from CAN show that smoking rates have fallen so far,” he explains.

“But we’ll have to wait for the official statistics from the Public Health Agency of Sweden before we can confirm that Sweden has reached its smoke-free goal.”