In 2023, a representative sample of 14,984 adults aged 18 to 75 living in mainland France was surveyed as part of the Survey on Attitudes, Opinions, and Perceptions Regarding Psychotropic Drugs (EROPP), which has been conducted by the OFDT since 1999.

Smoking and Vaping in 2023 and Their Trends by Socioeconomic Factors

Between 2021 and 2023, daily smoking declined: 23.1% of daily smokers in 2023 compared to 25.3% in 2021. This is the lowest proportion of daily smokers since the late 1990s. This decline in daily smoking is particularly pronounced among the unemployed: compared to 2021, the proportion of daily smokers among the unemployed has fallen by 10 percentage points (from 45.8% to 35.7%). Furthermore, people without a high school diploma or with a diploma below the high school level have a significantly higher rate of daily tobacco use (28.9%) than those reporting a diploma above the high school level (16.6%). Men are more likely to be daily smokers than women (25.4% vs. 20.9%).

Regarding vaping, the proportion of adults reporting having vaped at least once in their lifetime has nearly doubled in nine years, rising from 25.7% in 2014 to 41.8%. In 2023, current vaping affects 8.3% of 18- to 75-year-olds, and it is most often a daily practice (6.1% of 18- to 75-year-olds) that affects all segments of the French adult population. Men are more likely to be daily vapers (6.8% vs. 5.4% among women).

Regional Disparities in Smoking and Vaping

Four regions stand out in terms of the percentage of daily smokers: Île-de-France and Brittany, where daily smoking rates are the lowest in mainland France (19.6% and 19.5%, respectively), and the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regions, which, conversely, have the highest rates (26.5% and 26.8%, respectively). In 2021, Île-de-France and PACA already stood out for having lower (for Île-de-France) and higher (for PACA) levels of daily smoking than other regions in mainland France.

In 2023, daily vaping is more common in two regions of mainland France: Brittany and Normandy (8.5% and 8.1%, respectively). This distinctive feature of Brittany had already been observed in 2021.

While regional differences exist, there are multiple potential explanatory factors. These may be cultural (perceptions of usage), socio-economic (living conditions, access to supplies), or related to tobacco control and prevention policies implemented at the local level.