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Tobacco prices in Europe: what 26 years of records show (2000-2026)

By Bryan Schmitt · Published on June 28, 2026 · Updated on October 23, 2026

In 2000, a pack of Marlboro cost €3.20 in France. In 2026 it costs €13.50. The same pack is €19.20 in Ireland and €6.25 in Spain. We have tracked these price series across 13 countries since 2000. Here is what they actually show.

Twenty-six years of rises, at very different speeds

To compare countries that do not share a currency, we work in local-currency multipliers, meaning the ratio between the 2026 price and the 2000 price. No exchange rate enters that calculation, it cancels out. The result contradicts the received wisdom of a uniform "three to fourfold" rise across Western Europe. Here are the steepest increases on a pack of Marlboro:

Tunisia: x7.0, from 1.50 to 10.50 dinars
Poland: x5.8, from 5.04 to 28.99 zlotys
Belgium: x4.4, from €2.95 to €13.00
Portugal: x4.3, from €1.50 to €6.50
France: x4.2, from €3.20 to €13.50
Ireland: x4.0, from €4.80 to €19.20

At the other end, Switzerland merely doubled, x2.1, from 4.60 to 9.70 francs. Spain is at x2.8 and Austria at x2.8. The real range therefore runs from 2.1 to 7.0, not from 3 to 4.

The 2026 ranking, converted to euros

Once every price is converted to euros, the Marlboro pack lines up like this in 2026:

Australia €40.54, Ireland €19.20, United Kingdom €17.00, France €13.50, Netherlands €13.50, Belgium €13.00
Switzerland €10.19, United States €9.57, Germany €9.40
Luxembourg €7.70, Austria €7.00, Italy €6.80, Poland €6.67, Portugal €6.50
Spain €6.25, Andorra €4.85, Morocco €3.63, Tunisia €3.15, Turkey €2.24

Across the 13 countries tracked since 2000 the gap reaches 6.1 times, between Tunisia and Ireland. Turkey, added to our database in September 2026, goes lower still: €2.24 a pack, a gap of 8.6 times with Ireland. Its series only starts in 2019, so it stays out of the multipliers above. At the other extreme, Australia, added in October 2026, reaches €40.54 a pack, more than twice the Irish price; its series starts in 2022. Within the European Union alone the gap is 3.1 times, between Spain and Ireland. Our 2026 ranking covers both ends, and the full country comparison gives the detail brand by brand.

Taxation explains almost everything

It is not tobacco that is expensive, it is what the state puts on top of it. Taxes, excise duty and VAT together, account for 70 to 80% of the price of a pack in the European Union. A country that raises its excise moves the retail price almost one for one, regardless of what the product actually costs.

These rises were rarely accidental. Several countries voted multi-year tax roadmaps, with a price target announced years in advance. That is why immediate neighbours can drift so far apart.

Two divergences that tell the whole story

Spain and Germany. In 2000 a pack was €2.25 on one side and €2.81 on the other, a gap of 56 cents. In 2026 it is €6.25 against €9.40: the gap has risen more than fivefold and is now above €3. Two countries that started together, two opposite tax policies.

Italy. Our Italian series only starts in 2010, at €4.50, so it stays out of the multipliers above, as does Morocco's (from 2015). Since 2010 a pack there has gone to €6.80, x1.5, against x2.4 in France over the same period (from €5.65 to €13.50).

What these figures do not say

These are nominal euros, with no correction for inflation. Part of the rise is simply the general rise in prices, and that is not the interesting part. We strip it out in our comparison of tobacco inflation against general inflation.

On reliability, to be precise: the 2026 prices are surveyed, the historical series are partly reconstructed. Of the 13 Marlboro series that go back to 2000, 2 are confirmed end to end and 11 contain points interpolated between verified anchors. The shorter Turkish series contains surveyed prices only. Every country page shows its confidence index, so you know what the figure you are reading is worth.

And after 2026

Nothing points to a reversal. The European Commission wants to raise the excise floor from €90 to €215 per 1,000 cigarettes, which would narrow the gap from the top, but the text is stuck in the Council: we set out where the file stands. In the meantime the gaps remain, and with them the temptation to buy across the border. Customs allowances put strict limits on the quantities.

If these amounts give you one more reason to quit, our guide to quitting smoking reviews the methods and how well they actually work. In France, Tabac Info Service answers free of charge on 39 89.

Sources

Excise rates in force in each member state: European Commission
Detailed rates by product and country: TEDB tax database
Harmonised index of consumer prices, annual series: Eurostat
Proposed revision of the directive, floor raised to €215: European Commission
Price records for 19 countries, from 2000 to 2026, and their confidence index: our database

How much have tobacco prices risen since 2000?

It depends heavily on the country. In our records of the Marlboro pack between 2000 and 2026, the local-currency multiplier runs from 2.1 in Switzerland to 7.0 in Tunisia. France is at 4.2, from €3.20 to €13.50. The idea of a uniform three to fourfold rise is an approximation that hides a threefold spread.

Which country is the most and least expensive in 2026?

Of the 19 countries we track, Australia is the most expensive, at the equivalent of €40.54 for a pack of Marlboro, and Turkey the cheapest, at €2.24. In Europe, the most expensive is Ireland at €19.20, 8.6 times the Turkish price. Among the 13 countries tracked since 2000, the cheapest is Tunisia at €3.15. Within the European Union, the cheapest is Spain at €6.25, a ratio of 3.1 against Ireland.

Why do neighbouring countries have such different prices?

Because tobacco taxation remains a national competence and European law sets only a floor, never a ceiling. Spain and Germany were 56 cents apart in 2000 and are more than €3 apart in 2026, for the single reason that one raised its excise far faster than the other.