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How To Quit Smoking With Vaping

UK Switch Guide

How to Quit Smoking with Vaping

Vaping is the most popular and one of the most effective ways to stop smoking in the UK. This is your complete switch plan: build a personalised plan below, then follow the step-by-step guide to pick the right kit, get your nicotine right, get through your first week, and step your nicotine down over time. You don't have to wait for Stoptober or New Year - any day you feel ready is the right day to start.

Build your switch plan

Build your switch plan

We'll turn this into the right kit, nicotine strength and what you could save.

Your switch plan

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Kit: a simple refillable pod or MTL starter kit. Find your kit · Beginner kits
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Strength: 10 to 20mg nic salt (or 12mg freebase) (you are a moderate smoker). Check strength · Nic salts
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You could save about £4,000 a year. See your saving
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First week: vape whenever you would have smoked, use it as much as you need, and swap cigarettes out one by one.

A guide based on your answers, not medical advice. Your local Stop Smoking Service can help free of charge.

Does vaping help you quit smoking?

Yes. Vaping is the most popular stop-smoking aid in England and, used alongside support, is one of the most effective. It works because it deals with both sides of the habit: the nicotine your body is used to, and the hand-to-mouth routine of smoking. The NHS is clear that while vaping is not risk-free, it is substantially less harmful than smoking, because you are not inhaling the tar and most of the harmful chemicals produced by burning tobacco. If you don't smoke, don't vape - it is a tool for smokers switching away from cigarettes.

Worth knowing, even with the 2026 vape tax: from 1 October 2026 a new vape tax adds 22p per ml of e-liquid (plus VAT), so vaping will cost a little more. But the NHS and the UK government still back it as one of the most effective ways to stop smoking. Vaping is not risk-free, yet it is substantially less harmful than smoking, and the NHS says you are roughly twice as likely to quit with a vape than with patches or gum. The government even gives free vape kits to smokers through its Swap to Stop scheme, as part of the plan for a smoke-free UK. Your health is worth far more than the small extra cost, and vaping stays much cheaper than smoking even after the tax.

Step 1: Choose the right kit

The best first vape for most smokers is a small, simple refillable pod or mouth-to-lung (MTL) kit. These mimic the tight draw of a cigarette, are easy to use, and are the cheapest to run. You don't need big clouds or high power to stop smoking. Not sure which to get? Use our vape kit finder, see the best starter kits to quit smoking, or browse beginner kits.

Step 2: Get your nicotine strength right

This is the step most people get wrong, and it is the difference between quitting and going back to cigarettes. Too low and cravings win; too high and it feels harsh. Match the strength to how much you smoke: a lighter smoker suits around 10mg nic salt, a heavier smoker 20mg. Nic salts are smoother and satisfy cravings faster, which is why they suit new switchers. Work out yours with the nicotine strength finder or our strength guide for switchers, then browse nic salt e-liquids.

Step 3: Your first week switching

The first few days are the hardest, so set yourself up to win:

  • Vape whenever you would have smoked, and use it as much as you need. Do not worry if you vape more than you used to smoke - that is normal at the start.
  • A bit of dual use is OK. Many people still have the odd cigarette in the first week. Aim to swap them out one by one rather than expecting to stop dead.
  • Keep cigarettes out of the house if you can, and have a spare charged battery and e-liquid so you never get caught short.
  • If a flavour or strength is not working, change it. The right setup should genuinely satisfy the craving.

New to how a kit works? Read our beginners guide to vaping.

Step 4: Step down your nicotine, and off vaping

Vaping is a route away from cigarettes, and for many people the real goal is to come off nicotine altogether in time. Once you are comfortably smoke-free, you can gradually step your strength down at your own pace - for example 20mg to 10mg, then 6mg, then 3mg, then 0mg (nicotine-free) - only when you feel ready. From there, some people stop vaping completely; others stay on a low or zero-nicotine level, which is still far better than smoking. There is no rush and no single right answer.

And you do not have to wait for Stoptober or the new year to begin. Any day you feel ready is a good day to start, and the sooner you switch the sooner the benefits and the savings begin. When you are ready to drop the nicotine, browse 0mg and low-nicotine e-liquids. Your local Stop Smoking Service can support you free of charge and roughly triples your chance of quitting for good.

What you'll save

Money is one of the biggest reasons switching sticks. A pack-a-day smoker spends over £6,000 a year; the same person vaping a refillable kit typically spends a few hundred. See your own figure, now and after the 2026 vape tax, with the savings calculator, and see how your vape compares to cigarettes.

Quitting with vaping - FAQs

Yes. Vaping is the most popular quit aid in England and one of the most effective, especially combined with support from a Stop Smoking Service. It handles both the nicotine and the hand-to-mouth habit.

Vaping is not risk-free, but it is substantially less harmful than smoking because you are not inhaling tar and most of the chemicals from burning tobacco. It is intended for adult smokers switching; if you don't smoke, don't vape.

Match it to how much you smoke - roughly 10mg nic salt for a lighter smoker and 20mg for a heavier one. Start high enough to stop the cravings, then reduce later. Use the nicotine strength finder for a personalised answer.

A little dual use is normal in the first week. Aim to replace cigarettes with your vape one by one until you are fully switched. The goal is to stop smoking completely.

Yes. Once you are off cigarettes, step your strength down gradually - for example 20mg to 10mg, then 6mg, 3mg and 0mg - at your own pace. Some people then stop vaping altogether; others stay on a low or zero-nicotine level. There is no rush, and any day you feel ready is a good day to reduce.

Most smokers save hundreds to thousands of pounds a year - a pack-a-day smoker who switches to refilling typically saves around £5,000 a year. Use the savings calculator for your exact figure.

More vape tools

Vape kit finderNicotine strength finderSavings calculatorVape to cigarette calculatorAll vape tools
Vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking but it is not risk-free, and is intended for adult smokers and vapers. If you don't smoke, don't vape. This is general guidance, not medical advice; your local Stop Smoking Service or GP can give free, tailored support and roughly triples your chance of quitting for good.

Sources: NHS "Using e-cigarettes to stop smoking" and NHS Better Health "Vaping to quit smoking"; DHSC "Swap to Stop" scheme; NHS guidance that vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking and that you are roughly twice as likely to quit with a vape than with NRT. Guidance only, not medical advice.