Tobacco use prevalence in Spain 2022

In Spain, over one in every five people were considered smokers in 2022, with most of them being daily smokers. Former smokers accounted for 22 percent of the population, whereas over half of Spaniards were non-smokers. As of that year, more than 7.9 million people were daily smokers in Spain, of which approximately 3.3 million were women and about 4.5 million were men.

Regional differences

According to the latest reports, the region of Extremadura was the Spanish autonomous community that featured the highest share of people smoking, with a quarter of its population being daily smokers in 2022. Most Spanish regions, however, registered a daily smoking prevalence of over 17 percent with the exception of the communities of Melilla and the Basque Country. Andalusia ranked first by number of smokers, accounting for over 1.4 million daily smokers in 2022.

Shifting habits

Tobacco consumption is known to be a significant risk factor for developing lung cancer. As of 2020, around 21.7 thousand people died from lung cancer, a disease that affected more men than women in Spain. However, smoking habits have changed in the last few years. In 2022, the share of daily smokers reached around 20 percent of the population, a decrease of about five percentage points compared to the figures reported in 2009. At the same time, the percentage of individuals who quit smoking rose in Spain , ranging from 19 percent in 2009 to about 22 percent in 2022.