Our article – price of cigarettes by state: 10 cheapest states, reveals parts of the United States where smoking won’t lead you to bankruptcy.
Smoking cigarettes is a really bad habit and if you didn’t smoke so far, don’t begin. Being a smoker, definitely doesn’t pay off because of many reasons – it is bad for your health, it affects other people around you and it hurts the environment. Also, there is a financial side to smoking that makes it a less desirable habit in the recent times. The prices of cigarettes are constantly increasing. I will take the example of the average prices of cigarette packs in the United States. In 1993, the average retail price of a pack was $1.69. Sounds unbelievable right? Even more, when you know that the average in 2007 was $4.34. The main reason for the increase are the high cigarette tax rates implemented by states.
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If you guessed that this influenced the decrease of smokers, you are right. According to data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of 2015, 15.1% people in the United States consume cigarettes. This represents a 20.9% decrease compared to 2005. Overall, the number of cigarette consumers is decreasing in the developed countries. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case in developing countries, where the percentage of smokers keeps rising up. In case you are curious about other cigarettes related articles, check out our list of 5 Best-Selling Ultra-Light Cigarettes in the World.
In order to find the information about price of cigarettes by state and create a list of 10 price of cigarettes by state: 10 cheapest states, we have consulted the report made by The Awl from 2016. Each year, they collect the data about the prices of Marlboro Reds in all the states and calculate the average price of a pack by every state. This is a good indicator of the overall prices of all cigarettes brands. Now let’s check out where does being a smoker is least painful in terms of finances.
10. North Carolina
Average Price per Pack: $5.81
The price of cigarettes has decreased in North Carolina by 5% compared to 2015. In 2015 the pack of Marlboro Reds would cost you an average of $6.12. The number of adults who smoke in the state is believed to be around 19.0% or 1,472,900.
9. Alabama
Average Price per Pack: $5.62
In Alabama, there was also a decrease in the price in 2016 compared to 2015 when the average price per pack was $5.97. The estimations say that 803,600 adults consume cigarettes in the state, which is around 21.4% of its entire population.
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8. Mississippi
Average Price per Pack: $5.59
In 2015, to get a pack of Marlboro Reds in Mississippi you would have to cough up $5.75, which isn’t much of a difference compared to the price in 2016. The percentage of adults who smoke in the state is 22.5%, which stands at 509,700 people.
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7. Florida
Average Price per Pack: $5.57
If you live in Florida and consume cigarettes, then you must be delighted. The prices have gone down by 33% since 2015, when a pack of cigarettes was $8.40. The estimations are that around 2.5 million or 15.8% of adults smoke cigarettes in the state.
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6. Idaho
Average Price per Pack: $5.45
People from Idaho didn’t see much of a price change since 2015 when the average price pack was $5.61. The state is home for roughly 168,600 cigarette consumers.
5. Missouri
Average Price per Pack: $5.40
In Missouri, that’s up next in our list of price of cigarettes by state: 10 cheapest states, you had to pay an extra $0.24 for a pack of cigarettes in 2015, when the average price was $5.64. 22.3% of adults in the state smoke cigarettes, which stands for more than one million of the entire population.
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4. Hawaii
Average Price per Pack: $5.35
There is one more state on our list of 10 cheapest states to buy cigarettes, that saw a huge decrease in prices. You had to say goodbye to $8.02 in 2015 for a pack of cigarettes, which is a lot compared to today’s prices. The number of cigarette consumers is around 158,000, which roughly represents 14% of the state’s population.
3. North Dakota
Average Price per Pack: $5.32
The only state on the list of price of cigarettes by state: 10 cheapest states that saw an increase in the prices of cigarettes is North Dakota. In 2015, you had to spend $5.10 or 4% less to get a pack of Marlboro Reds. This increase was hard for around 100,000 or 18.7% adults in the state who smoke cigarettes.
2. Tennessee
Average Price per Pack: $5.28
The prices went down in Tennessee for around 7% compared to 2015 when you had to part ways with $5.70 to indulge in this unhealthy habit. More than 1.1 million adults or 21.9% of the population smokes in the state.
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1. Kentucky
Average Price per Pack: $5.19
Finally, we came to the cheapest state to buy cigarettes! Anyone who smokes cigarettes should consider moving here. The price is now lower compared to 2015 when the pack of Marlboro Reds was $5.45 on average. The low prices obviously had an impact on the people residing there, since it has the largest percentage of smokers on our list. Estimations say that 25.9% of the state’s population or around 880,000 people are cigarette consumers.
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We hope that this article on price of cigarettes by state: 10 cheapest states has provided you with the information you were looking for.
