Fact Sheet

Tobacco use: Maine 2026

Topic

Smoking by Region

Subtopic

State Facts

Cigarette use: Maine*

In 2024, 14.4% of adults smoked. Nationally, the adult cigarette smoking prevalence was 11.6%.
In 2018-2019, 16.5% of adults who smoked in Maine smoked menthol cigarettes. Nationally, 32.3% of adult smokers used menthol cigarettes during this period.
In 2023, 5.6% of high school students in Maine 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: Maine*

In 2024, 6.5% of adults in Maine used e-cigarettes. Nationally, the adult e-cigarette use prevalence was 8.0%.
In 2024, 2.2% of adults in Maine used smokeless tobacco. Nationally, the adult smokeless tobacco use prevalence was 3.4%.
In 2023, 16.4% of high school students in Maine 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, 3.1% of high school students in Maine 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, 4.4% of high school students in Maine smoke 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

Maine received $183.6 million in revenue from tobacco settlement payments and taxes in fiscal year 2026.
Of this, the state allocated $15.9 million in state funds to tobacco prevention in fiscal year 2026, 100% of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's annual spending target.
Smoking-related health care costs: $942 million per year.
Smoking-related losses in productivity: $1.5 billion per year.

Maine tobacco laws

Tobacco taxes

Maine is ranked 8th in the U.S. for its cigarette tax of $3.50 per pack (enacted July 2025), 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).
Smokeless tobacco, including chewing tobacco and snuff, is taxed at a minimum of $2.02 per ounce. All other tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, are taxed at 43% of the wholesale sales price.

Clean indoor air ordinances

Smoking is prohibited in all government and private workplaces, schools, childcare facilities, restaurants, bars, and retail stores.
Smoking restrictions are required in casinos/gaming establishments (tribal establishments are exempt).
E-cigarettes are prohibited in public places, but not in all workplaces. E-cigarette use is prohibited in the same spaces smoking is prohibited, including certain indoor public spaces and day care/babysitting facilities (and related transportation vehicles), in school buildings, on school grounds or buses or at any school-sponsored event, certain outdoor areas, and near beaches, state parks, and historic sites. Vaping and use of e-cigarettes is prohibited throughout the Wells Reserve except at designated smoking areas in parking lots.
E-cigarettes are included in the state's definition of smoking and tobacco products.

Flavor restrictions

The sale of cigars with characterizing flavors is banned. Characterizing flavor is defined as having a distinguishable taste or aroma of candy, chocolate, vanilla, fruit, berry, nut, herb, spice, honey or an alcoholic drink. Menthol is exempted. Premium cigars, defined as cigars weighing more than three pounds per thousand cigars and wrapped in whole tobacco leaf, are exempt.

Licensing laws

Retailers and wholesalers are required to obtain a license to sell tobacco products.
A license is required to sell e-cigarette products.
Pharmacies are prohibited from selling tobacco 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 21 are prohibited.
People under 21 are prohibited from buying electronic smoking devices, including e-cigarettes.

Local tobacco laws

Bangor, Bar Harbor, Brunswick, Portland, and South Portland prohibit the sale of all flavored tobacco products.
Rockland prohibits the sale of flavored e-cigarettes.
South Portland prohibits tobacco retailers within 1000 feet of schools and 300 feet from other areas including churches, parks, and childcare centers.

Quitting statistics and benefits

The CDC estimates 48.0% of daily adult smokers in Maine quit smoking for one or more days in 2019.
In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that Medicaid programs cover all quit medications.**
Maine's state quit line invests $15.72 per smoker, compared with the national median investment per smoker of $2.62.
Maine has a private insurance mandate provision for quitting tobacco.

Notes and references

Updated March 2026

*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.

CDC. (2024). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
CDC. (2024). State Menthol Fact Sheets.
CDC. (2023). High School Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System.
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2026). Broken Promises to Our Children: A State-by-State Look at the 1998 Tobacco Settlement 27 Years Later. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/what-we-do/us/statereport
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2024). The Toll of Tobacco in the United States. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
American Lung Association. (2024). State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues (SLATI).
American Lung Association. (2026). State of Tobacco Control. https://www.lung.org/research/sotc
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2024). State Cigarette Excise Tax Rates & Rankings. https://assets.tobaccofreekids.org/factsheets/0097.pdf
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
Truth Initiative. (2024, June 30). Local restrictions on flavored tobacco and e-cigarette products. https://truthinitiative.org/research-resources/emerging-tobacco-products/local-restrictions-flavored-tobacco-and-e-cigarette
An Act to Prohibit the Sale of Tobacco Products in Pharmacies and Retail Establishments Containing Pharmacies, LD 166, Maine State Legislature (2025).
FDA. (2024). Tobacco 21. https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products/retail-sales-tobacco-products/tobacco-21
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. (2023). Maine Senate Acts to Protect Kids from Big Tobacco by Voting to End…. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/press-releases/2023_06_22_maine-senate-votes-to-end-sale-of-flavored-tobacco-products
City of Rockland: Charter & Code Ordinances. Chapter 12, Article X Ban on Electronic Flavored Tobacco and Nicotine Products. (2024). https://rocklandmaine.gov/documents/charter-code/
Substitute Ordinance #9-19/20, Chapter 27 (2019).
CDC. (2024). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation System.