The Surprising Cost of Cigarettes

Although cigarette prices vary wildly from place to place – Canada having among the highest cigarette price per pack – one this is certain, smokers are not pleased with the surprising cost of cigarettes and the fact that the price only seems to be rising as the government slaps more taxes on them. Whether or not you view that as a good thing likely depends on if you’re reading this with a pack of cigarettes sitting beside you.

Many politicians seem to view taxing cigarettes as an easy fix – discourage people from picking up the habit, encourage current smokers to quit and make a little money in the process. The problem with that line of thinking is aside from making a little money; the theory doesn’t seem to be terribly effective. New smokers are still picking up their first cigarette and setting fire to the end and old smokers are paying the inflated prices no matter how high they get – and complaining about it the whole time. Sadly, in case you are like other smokers, need for the cigarette outweighs your financial burden that places on you. Then spending 7 dollars every day for the pack of cigarettes appears like the legitimate expense that you can fulfill the need you feel you cannot do without. However have you considered a big picture? Have you calculated what are the smoking costs that you are paying every year or else over course of lifetime?

Today, an average cost for the pack of cigarettes is around seven dollars and typical smoker can probably smoke one pack every day. That depends on your habit, and you can adjust numbers, however for purpose of all these calculations numbers above is sufficient.

In Canada, the surprising cost of cigarettes has lead to a rise in crime with many Canadians turning to buying black market, or unstamped, cigarettes. These illegal cigarettes can be dangerous as there’s really no way to tell what’s in them, but many aren’t concerned enough to stop turning to those avenues. In most cases a carton of unstamped cigarettes costs a third of what a consumer would pay at a store. For many, that is too good of an offer to pass up.

The theory among most smokers is that eventually, cigarettes, at least in Canada, will cost over fifteen dollars per pack. If that is the case, they say, they’ll quit. Then again, I can clearly remember my mother and her friends making the same claim if cigarettes reached ten dollars a pack. That time has come and passed, and my mother is a smoker still.

The risks linked with smoking will extend far beyond often-reported health related consequences. Money that is spent trying for supporting the addiction is astounding, as well as while you might not recognize burden over its course of day, week and even one month, cost of the smoking over course of the lifetime can certainly put to better use. What you & your family can do with the extra $102,000 for 40 years from now? So, think about that next time when you feel to light up your cigarette.