What Are Shortfill E-Liquids? A Quick Guide to Shortfills and Nic Shots

What Is a Shortfill E-Liquid?

A shortfill is a bottle of 0mg vape juice that isn't filled to the top. The gap at the top is there so you can add a nic shot and mix your own nicotine strength.

UK law (the TPD) stops shops from selling nicotine e-liquid in anything bigger than 10ml. Shortfills get round this because the bottle ships nicotine free. You buy the nic shot separately and add it yourself.

You'll see shortfills in 50ml, 100ml, and 200ml sizes. The bottle is always bigger than the liquid inside it to leave room for one or more nic shots.

How Do Nic Shots Work?

A nic shot is a small 10ml bottle of unflavoured nicotine. You pour it into your shortfill, give the bottle a good shake, and it turns the 0mg juice into a 3mg (or 6mg) vape liquid. No flavour added from the nic shot itself so your juice tastes the same.

How to Mix a Shortfill (Step by Step)

1. Take the cap and nozzle off your shortfill bottle
2. Pour the full nic shot into the shortfill
3. Put the nozzle and cap back on tightly
4. Shake the bottle hard for about 30 seconds
5. Leave it to settle for 10 minutes if you can (not essential, but helps)
6. Fill your tank or pod and you're ready to vape

The whole thing takes about 30 seconds. The bottle is sized so one nic shot fills the gap exactly.

Freebase vs Nic Salt Shots

You've got two options when it comes to nic shots.

Freebase is the standard pick for shortfill mixing. Nic salt shots work the same way but feel smoother on the inhale.

Mixing Strength Table

Here's what you get from the most common setup using 18mg freebase nic shots.

Most shortfill vapers sit at 3mg. If you want 0mg, just skip the nic shot and vape the shortfill as it comes.

What VG/PG Ratio Are Shortfills?

Most shortfills are 70/30 or 80/20 VG/PG. That's on the thicker side, made for sub-ohm kits and higher wattage vaping where you want bigger clouds and a smoother draw.

50/50 shortfills do exist and they're thinner. These work in pod kits and lower powered setups. Brands like Imp Jar and Doozy make 50/50 shortfills if you want the bigger bottle size without needing a sub-ohm tank.

One tip: match your nic shot ratio to your shortfill ratio. Using a 70/30 shortfill? Go with a 70/30 nic shot. A mismatched shot won't ruin anything but the consistency might be slightly off.

Which Kit Do I Need for Shortfills?

It comes down to the VG/PG ratio of the shortfill.

High VG shortfills are too thick for most small pod kits. The liquid won't wick fast enough and you'll get dry hits. Stick to sub-ohm coils below 0.5 ohm for the best results with standard shortfills.

If you already use a refillable vape kit and want bigger bottles, look for 50/50 shortfills specifically.

Are Shortfills Cheaper Than 10ml Bottles?

Yes. Ml for ml, shortfills work out a lot cheaper than buying individual nic salt or freebase 10ml bottles.

A 100ml shortfill plus two nic shots gets you 120ml of juice for a fraction of what twelve separate 10ml bottles would cost. If you vape daily, the difference over a month is significant.

Shortfills are the cheapest way to buy e-liquid in the UK right now. That's worth knowing with the new vape duty landing in October 2026.

Shortfills and the UK Vape Duty (October 2026)

From 1 October 2026, every ml of e-liquid sold in the UK gets hit with a new tax called the Vaping Products Duty. It's 22p per ml, flat rate, whether the bottle has nicotine in it or not. So a 0mg shortfill gets taxed at the same rate as a 20mg nic salt.

Here's what that looks like for shortfill buyers.

Shortfills are hit hardest because the tax is based on volume. A 100ml bottle that currently costs under £10 could end up north of £30 once the duty is applied.

The Sell Through Window

Retailers can continue selling unstamped stock (bought before the duty kicks in) until April 2027. After that date, every bottle on sale must carry a Vaping Duty Stamp on the packaging.

That gives a roughly six month window from October 2026 to April 2027. During that time you can still buy shortfills at current prices while shops clear existing stock.

Shelf Life and Stocking Up

E-liquid bottles have a printed shelf life of about two years from production. That's the date on the label. But here's the thing with shortfills: they're 0mg. Nicotine is the part that goes off over time, and there's none in the bottle. A 0mg shortfill kept in a cupboard away from sunlight and heat will hold its flavour well past that two year date.

If you vape shortfills regularly and know which flavours you'll use, buying ahead before April 2027 makes sense. You'll avoid paying the full duty on every bottle going forward. The bigger your bottle size, the more you save per ml by buying before the tax hits.

Best Shortfill Brands at Ecigone

We stock shortfills from dozens of brands. These are some of the ones our customers come back to most.

• Doozy Shortfills big flavour range across fruit, menthol, and dessert categories
• Zeus Juice Shortfills award winning UK brand with some of the most recognised shortfill recipes around
• IVG 100ml Shortfills 100ml bottles from one of the UK's biggest vape brands
• Just Juice Shortfills fruit focused range with strong tropical and citrus options
• Nasty Juice globally known brand with bold fruit and menthol shortfills
• Wick Liquor dessert and bakery shortfills with a loyal following
• Drifter Bar Shortfills disposable inspired flavours in 50/50 shortfill format for pod kit users
• Big Bold 100ml bottles with strong, punchy flavour profiles

The full shortfill e-liquids collection has everything we carry.