How Much Do Vapes Cost?

Over the past few years, nicotine vaping products (NVPs) have emerged as a serious quitting option for many smokers. It’s a big deal when you consider that smoking is still Australia’s number one preventable cause of death and disease, claiming around 24,000 lives annually and takes off 2 hours of your life every stick.

But here’s the question: are NVPs actually more affordable than cigarettes? With tobacco prices skyrocketing, a cost-effective way to quit could be the final push some smokers need to leave cigarettes behind.

Today, we’ll break down what pharmacy vapes cost in Australia and how they might help you keep more money in your pocket while you work toward quitting for good.

What’s the Price Tag on Vaping?

For anyone in a smoking cessation program, vaping can be a much cheaper alternative to cigarettes. In Australia, a nicotine cartridge purchased from a pharmacy—designed specifically for medically supported quitting—usually runs between $10 and $13. 

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Each cartridge provides roughly the same puff count as a 20-pack of cigarettes.

For a pack-a-day smoker, the savings can be staggering—up to $12,500 per year. Work with your GP, and as you gradually reduce your nicotine use, those savings can grow even more. Plus, every cigarette you skip gives you about two extra hours of life back.

If you’re interested in knowing your potential savings, try out our Savings Calculator.

To use the right products, steer clear of vapes sold at corner shops, supermarkets, or tobacconists. They’re often pricier in the long term, can be unsafe, and offer no consumer protection if something goes wrong. 

We’ll get into the risks of these products in more detail later on.

Are There Fines for Vaping in Australia?

In Australia, vaping falls under the same smokefree regulations as cigarettes, with additional territory-specific rules. These laws are in place to protect non-smokers and children by keeping smoking and vaping out of places like playgrounds and public parks.

Breaking these rules can be costly. In the Australian Capital Territory, for example, racking up 20 penalty units for vaping in restricted areas could set you back about $3,000.

How much do vapes cost? Enough to save you at least $12,500 a year, but make sure you don’t pay a huge fraction of it in fines. 

Instead, use your pharmacy NVP in a well-ventilated room with no other person or pets present to ensure everyone’s safety and keep you off the cigarettes.

Do Vapes Cost Differently in Every Territory?

Most pharmacy-sold NVPs have a standard retail price that should not change as the manufacturer and distributor has set. 

To be sure, head to or call your local pharmacy ahead of time to know if there are additional costs for ordering in your chosen NVP. 

As pharmacy NVPs are almost always readily available in any pharmacy, the price should not increase or be significantly higher than the figures mentioned above.

Increasing Cigarette Expenses in Australia

Every smoker in Australia knows that cigarettes are frightfully expensive, and the expenses pile on because it’s terribly difficult to quit. A pack-a-day smoker of a 20’s pack would be spending at least $40 for a popular cigarette brand every single day – around $14,000 a year.

Clearly, it’s a huge sum of money. It’s enough for a college fund, or an entire year’s worth of groceries.

Aside from the financial benefits of quitting smoking with the help of pharmacy NVPs, you also avoid the many diseases and medical expenses you might face with continued tobacco use.

More About Pharmacy Nicotine Vaping Products (NVPs)

Now that you know how pharmacy NVPs can help you save thousands and avoid possible health expenses in the future, let’s take a look at why these second-line tools are a great way to help you quit the stick for good.

No Deadly Cigarette Smoke

As mentioned, the chemicals in cigarette smoke are the primary culprit behind the many health problems of regular smokers. 

With each stick, you’re inhaling aldehydes, carbon monoxide, tar, cadmium (found in batteries), ammonia, and acetone (used in industrial cleaners), which significantly affect your lungs and overall health. 

Pharmacy vapes are made with the highest standards (ISO and GMP), and all of the ingredients of their e-liquids are identified/characterised and assessed for inhalation safety by expert toxicologists. 

What you’re inhaling is developed solely for your health and safety, and is efficiently designed to help you quit smoking for good.

Effective in Smoking Cessation

Many GPs and successful quitters have found pharmacy NVPs as a great way to quit smoking for good. 

While you can only use NVPs after you’ve gone through nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) such as patches and gums, The latest Cochrane review found high-certainty evidence that NVPs are more effective than NRT in helping people quit for good.

Manages Nicotine Withdrawals

Pharmacy NVPs are a great alternative when NRT isn’t working for a motivated smoker – and for many good reasons. 

Motivated smokers have different triggers that can cause severe nicotine cravings – it could be as simple as having your morning coffee, heading outside on your work break, or the most difficult: drinks with friends.

GPs have found that NVPs from pharmacies address these situational, behavioural, and gesture-related triggers of their patients much better, as it gives them something to use to satisfy their cravings without dreaming of a cigarette.

Important: Understanding Illegal Vapes vs. Pharmacy NVPs

You may have noticed we’re mostly talking about pharmacy NVPs here. In Australia, NVPs you can buy from your local pharmacy have the highest medical manufacturing standards, are insured, and are designed to help you quit smoking with your health and safety as the focus.

None of this is true for the illegal vapes you can buy from tobacconists and corner shops. Let’s take a closer look at why.

Illegal Vapes

Profit is the only goal of illegal vape sellers. So, how much does an illegal vape cost the average user?

Overseas manufacturers pump out these dangerous products for as little as $1, with local importers and distributors ticking up the prices by 3,500% to maximise their profits.

But, price isn’t the only cost with illegal vapes.

Unsuspecting citizens will become easily addicted to these unregulated products because they can contain up to 357mg of nicotine in each device – which is not only exponentially higher than what’s needed for smoking cessation, but can be extremely dangerous to your health. 

If you do keep on buying them, you’re greatly endangering your health and safety – these devices have been found to contain nickel and lead and even human saliva.

Illegal vapes also put public health in danger. Many teenagers and even children as young as 5 are drawn to the fruity, candy-like flavours and attractive packaging these illegal products have. What starts as a youthful curiosity is ending in a potentially lifelong health struggle. 

Remember, if you buy a vaping product anywhere outside of a pharmacy, you’ll personally be supporting and growing a blackmarket that profits from anyone they can sell to – even little children.

Pharmacy Vapes

As mentioned, pharmacy vapes are manufactured entirely for smoking cessation. These are medically supported products made with the highest standards possible in sanitary facilities. 

Knowledgeable experts compliant with medical device manufacturing standards and good manufacturing practices are involved in every part of the process. 

They characterise each e-liquid ingredient, test any compounds once the e-liquid is aerosolized, and ensure they’re suitable for anyone going through a smoking cessation programme with medical support.

How to Access Pharmacy Vapes and Save Money (and Your Lungs)

Let’s take a closer look at the process on how you can buy pharmacy vapes

Go Through First-Line Solutions First

You need a nicotine prescription before you can purchase NVPs. As a second-line solution, one requirement is that you’ve already tried and failed to quit smoking with a first-line treatment, such as NRT products. 

NRT products (like patches and gums) are the most trusted quitting option available for motivated smokers. They might not imitate cigarettes, but they contain a small dose of nicotine that may be enough to alleviate your withdrawals.

While NRTs can be effective, they don’t work for everyone. If these haven’t done the trick for you, you may now be eligible for a nicotine prescription.

Chat to a GP

As mentioned, NRT products have worked for many successful ex-smokers. But, you might have ingrained behaviours and triggers that only something that mimics a cigarette can successfully address, such as the hand-to-mouth motion, and needing something to use while having a drink with friends. 

If your GP deems it necessary, they can write you a nicotine prescription for NVPs. 

You can chat to your usual GP about this, or book a phone chat with an authorised prescriber of nicotine.

Visit Your Local Pharmacy

Once you have your nicotine prescription, you can pop down to your local pharmacy. Over 2,200 pharmacies across Australia hold these products in-store, but any pharmacy can order these in for you if they don’t currently stock them.

Both your pharmacist and GP can advise you on how best to use the product, such as the initial setup, and the number of puffs to take when you feel withdrawals.

Does Vaping Save You Money In the Long Run?

Pharmacy NVPs save you a great deal of money, not only of your total yearly expenses on packs of cigarettes, but also accounting for the health expenses you’ll avoid in the future.

If you’re under a smoking cessation programme and your GP prescribes an NVP to you, you can expect enormous, life-changing savings for your wallet.

We certainly understand that the road to quitting is a long and tiring journey, but we can always lighten the load and keep you motivated throughout.

Smokefree Clinic gives you access to many medically reviewed and trustworthy resources that can inform and aid you in your path to wellness, so have a look around! 

If you’re ready to get started, Smokefree can connect you to Australian healthcare professionals who excel in helping patients quit smoking for good, including using responsible vaping products where appropriate.

Click here to book your telehealth consultation with an Australian healthcare professional and quit smoking today.