The smoking-related economic costs are enormous.The financial cost of tobacco use for a smoker can be substantial, especially when costs are accrued over a lifetime. The graph displays the cost of smoking for people who buy 1 to 3 packs of cigarettes every day for 50 years at $6.03/pack (national average).

Considering the costs to society, the grand total annual smoking-attributable economic costs in the United States is approximately $289 billion. This includes costs such as health-care expenditures and lost productivity. For each pack of cigarettes sold, the actual cost to society is $10.47—nearly double the average retail cost of a pack of cigarettes ($6.03).

Strong tobacco control programs can reduce the prevalence of smoking, save lives, and also substantially reduce the costs associated with smoking.