Adult vapers increasingly rely on disposable vapes: study

Vapers in the US and the UK are becoming more sceptical about disposable devices — but that hasn’t stopped them using the products, according to new research from ECigIntelligence.

For about 50 per cent of US vapers, a disposable was their most-used device in 2024, compared with about 30 per cent in 2022, as revealed in an ECigIntelligence report based on surveys in both years.

In the UK, where selling disposable vapes will be illegal from 1st June, the figure grew from about 25 per cent to about 40 per cent.

“Our research highlights a problem that many countries, including the UK, may face in banning disposable vapes,” said Barnaby Page, editorial director at ECigIntelligence. “Although the main reason for these bans is to reduce youth use, it’s clear that many adults are also relying on disposables.”

However, many vapers do seem to agree with another reason for disposable bans — the amount of waste created by these devices.

Concerns over disposables’ impact on the environment and health increased in both countries, while the proportion of vapers who thought disposables had “no drawback” decreased in both. Indeed, in the UK the proportion of vapers worried about the environment nearly doubled.

Other changes noted by ECigIntelligence’s researchers included a sharp decline in dual use (continuing to smoke while also being a vaper) between 2022 and 2024. In both countries, vapers are now more likely to vape exclusively, and not smoke at all.

The research also found that fruit flavours were the most popular in 2024 in both countries. Mint/menthol is more popular in the US than in the UK, while sweets/candy flavours are more popular in the UK than in the US.

This, too, conflicts with the assumption that fruit and candy flavours are primarily attractive to youth. “In all countries, fruit and candy flavours are among those targeted by flavour bans — again to reduce underage vaping — but our research shows that they are also very popular with vapers of legal age, much more than tobacco flavour,” said Page.

The report Changes in Perceptions and Consumption Behaviour Among Vapers in the US and UK was based on surveys of regular vapers over the age of 21 in 2022 and 2024. In both years, more than 1000 respondents took part in each country.