Fact Sheet

Tobacco use: Alaska 2026

Topic

Smoking by Region

Subtopic

State Facts

Cigarette use: Alaska*

In 2024, 14.7% of adults in Alaska smoked cigarettes. Nationally, the adult cigarette smoking prevalence was 11.6%.
In 2018-2019, 19.6% of adults who smoked in Alaska smoked menthol cigarettes. Nationally, 32.3% of adult smokers used menthol cigarettes during this period.

In 2023, 6.5% of high school students in Alaska smoked cigarettes on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the prevalence of cigarette smoking among high school students was 3.5%.

Other tobacco product use: Alaska*

In 2024, 8.4% of adults in Alaska used e-cigarettes. Nationally, the adult e-cigarette use prevalence was 8.0%
In 2024, 6.0% of adults in Alaska used smokeless tobacco every day or some days. Nationally, the adult smokeless tobacco use prevalence was 3.4%.

In 2023, 17.3% of high school students in Alaska used electronic vapor products on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the e-cigarette use prevalence among high school students was 16.8%.

In 2023, 7.0% of high school students in Alaska used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the smokeless tobacco use prevalence among high school students was 2.3%.

In 2023, 3.2% of high school students in Alaska smoked cigars, cigarillos or little cigars on at least one day in the past 30 days. Nationally, the cigar use prevalence among high school students was 4.5%.

Economics of tobacco use and tobacco control

Alaska received $59.2 million (estimated) in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2026.
Of this, the state allocated $6.4 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2026, 51% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s annual spending target.
Smoking-related health care costs: $509 million per year.
Smoking-related losses in productivity: $621.3 million per year.

Alaska tobacco laws

Tobacco taxes

Alaska is ranked 22nd in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $2.00 per pack (enacted July 2007), compared with the national average of $2.05. (New York has the highest tax at $5.35 and Missouri has the lowest at 17 cents).
All other tobacco products are taxed at 75% of the wholesale price.

Clean indoor air ordinances

Smoking is prohibited in all government workplaces, private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, retail stores, and bars.
Smoking restrictions are not required in casinos/gaming establishments (tribal establishments only).
Use of e-cigarettes is prohibited in the same places smoking is prohibited, including enclosed public areas such as office buildings, hotels, bars, common areas of apartment buildings, places of employment, public transportation, sports venues, child care facilities, and outdoors within 10 feet of playground equipment, and within 20 feet of windows and vents of buildings in which smoking prohibited (with some exceptions). E-cigarette use is also prohibited in foster homes and vehicles used to transport children.
E-cigarettes are included in the state’s indoor air laws and the state’s definition of smoking, but are not included in the state’s definition of tobacco products.

Licensing laws

Retailers are required to obtain a license to sell tobacco products. Wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell cigarettes but not to sell other tobacco products.
Retailers and wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell e-cigarette products.

Youth access laws

In December 2019, the United States adopted a law raising the federal minimum age of sale of all tobacco products to 21, effective immediately.
Establishments are required to post signs stating that sales to people under 19 are prohibited.
People under 21 are prohibited from buying alternative nicotine products, including e-cigarettes.

Quitting statistics and benefits

The CDC estimates 56.1% of daily adult smokers in Alaska quit smoking for one or more days in 2019.
In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all quit medications.**
Alaska’s state quit line invests $7.32 per smoker, compared with the national median of $2.62.
Alaska does not have a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.

Notes and references

* The datasets for both adults and youth prevalence were used to make direct comparisons at the state and national levels. National prevalence reported here may differ from what is reported in our national-level fact sheets. The numbers here also reflect the most recent data available. Dates of available data may differ across state fact sheets.

** The seven recommended quitting medications are NRT gum, NRT patch, NRT nasal spray, NRT inhaler, NRT lozenge, Varenicline (Chantix) and Bupropion (Zyban).

Fiore MC, et al. Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update. Clinical Practice Guideline. Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services. Public Health Service: May 2008.

Updated March 2026

1. CDC. (2024). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

2. CDC. (2024). State Menthol Fact Sheets.

3. CDC. (2023). High School Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System.

4. Broken Promises to Our Children: A State-by-State Look at the 1998 Tobacco Settlement 27 Years Later. (2026). Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/what-we-do/us/statereport

5. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2024). The Toll of Tobacco in the United States. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

6. American Lung Association. (2024). State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues (SLATI).

7. American Lung Association. (2026). State of Tobacco Control.

8. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2024). State Cigarette Excise Tax Rates & Rankings. https://assets.tobaccofreekids.org/factsheets/0097.pdf

9. Public Health Law Center. (2024, June 15). U.S. E-Cigarette Regulations: 50 State Review. https://www.publichealthlawcenter.org/resources/us-e-cigarette-regulations-50-state-review

10. FDA. (2024). Tobacco 21. https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products/retail-sales-tobacco-products/tobacco-21

11. CDC. (2024). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation System.