The rise in the price of a pack of cigarettes in 2025

It had been announced, and the government has done it. Since 1 January 2025, the price of tobacco has risen again. Your pack could now cost you up to 12.50 euros, depending on your usual brand. Here is where things stand.

A succession of rises in the price of tobacco

The price of tobacco has been rising for 20 years, with rates climbing sharply since 1 March 2023. Under the plan against smoking led by the former health minister Aurélien Rousseau, the average price of a pack of cigarettes was to rise by 2 euros in two stages by 2026. But with the 2023 social security funding act (LFSS), the price of tobacco was then adjusted in line with inflation.

On 1 January 2024, some packs of cigarettes had already seen a considerable rise, sometimes reaching an extra euro. Packs at 10 euros were therefore not uncommon. At the beginning of 2025, the average price of a pack of cigarettes is being taken to 12.5 euros. Finally, the timetable provides for a further rise during 2026, which will bring packs to 13 euros each.

The increase varies according to the manufacturer and the product. Do you smoke cigars? You are not spared either. Those products are also affected by the rise in tobacco prices, as are heated tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco.

A few reminders on how the price of tobacco is set in France

To understand how the price of tobacco is established in France, several factors have to be taken into account.

Customs duties

The amount of customs duty is not the same depending on the type of product. After importation, the price of a pack of cigarettes is determined by:

• the cost of insurance and freight (around 0.80 euro for a pack of cigarettes);
• the applicable rate of customs duty, generally 57.6%, although that rate may vary;
• the customs duty itself, amounting to around 0.46 euro for a pack;

VAT

The rate is based on the approved retail selling price of manufactured tobacco under article 572 of the French general tax code (CGI). It currently stands at 20%, but the VAT rate has to be calculated on an inclusive basis, representing the rate paid by the supplier. To do so, the following calculation is used, in which T stands for the current VAT rate: T/(1xT).

Consumption duty

All tobacco imported into French territory is subject to a consumption duty, defined by article L314-24 of the French code of levies on goods and services. It has two parts:

• a specific part, expressed as an amount per thousand units or grams and set by product group;
• a part proportional to the retail selling price.

By way of example, this rate is 55% for 1,000 cigarettes or 1,000 grams of tobacco, 36.30% for cigars and cigarillos, 49.10% for roll-your-own tobacco and 51.40% for all other types of tobacco (with the exception of snuff at 58.10% and chewing tobacco at 40.70%).

How tobacconists are paid

While tobacco manufacturers set their prices freely, those prices must be approved by the government. Tobacconists, for their part, receive a gross margin on the selling price. In 2025, that amount comes to 10.29% of the tobacco selling price, or 8.35% net.