Despite electronic cigarettes being a tax advantaged product, vaping actually costs more than the heavily taxed tobacco cigarettes in many countries around the world, according to a new study.
Researchers found that in 44 of 45 countries sampled, combustible tobacco cigarettes cost less to purchase than equivalent amounts of e-cigarettes.
Scientists led by Alex Liber of the American Cancer Society and the University of Michigan compared the cost of combustible cigarettes to those for two major kinds of e-cigarettes - disposable e-cigarettes (non-refillable); and rechargeable e-cigarettes, which can be refilled with nicotine liquid.
Researchers found that on average, the price of a pack of combustible tobacco cigarettes was just over half the price of a disposable e-cigarette (USD 5 and USD 8.50, respectively).
They also found that while the liquid nicotine used to refill e-cigarettes can cost a couple of dollars less than a pack of regular cigarettes, the minimum price to purchase a rechargeable e-cigarette to use this liquid nicotine is more than USD 20.
The rechargeable e-cigarettes preferred by most daily e-cigarette users cost even more, researchers said.
Warnings that e-cigarettes are a cheap, tax advantaged product relative to heavily taxed combustible cigarettes have been repeatedly claimed in the scientific literature and lay media.
These claims, however, do not appear to be based on empirical price data.
Researchers say the pervasiveness of this claim may lead some policymakers to consider imposing e-cigarette taxes without accurate information.
The findings were published in the journal Tobacco Control.
