Affordability of cigarettes in China

China: Affordability of cigarettes was 1.9% in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
1.9%
Change on year
down 11.8%
World rank
140th
of 176 countries
All-time high
2.7%
in 2012
All-time low
1.9%
in 2022
Years of data
6
2012–2022

Affordability of cigarettes in China, 2012–2022

01232012201720222012: 2.7 %2014: 2.5 %2016: 2.4 %2018: 2.2 %2020: 2.1 %2022: 1.9 %

Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for affordability of cigarettes in China is 1.9%, measured in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 6 years on record.

The figure is down 11.8% on the previous year and down 30.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, affordability of cigarettes in China peaked at 2.7% in 2012 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 2022.

China ranks 140th of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 2.4% 2.2% 2.7% 4
2020s 2.0% 1.9% 2.1% 2

Countries ranked near China

  1. 137 Azerbaijan 1.9% compare
  2. 137 Turkey 1.9% compare
  3. 139 Italy 1.9% compare
  4. 141 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1.8% compare
  5. 142 Mongolia 1.8% compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is affordability of cigarettes in China?
Affordability of cigarettes in China was 1.9% in 2022, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest affordability of cigarettes recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 2.7% in 2012.
What is the lowest affordability of cigarettes recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 2022.
How does China rank for affordability of cigarettes?
China ranks 140th out of 176 countries with data for 2022.
Is affordability of cigarettes rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is down 30.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Affordability of cigarettes. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Affordability of cigarettes
Unit
%
Source
World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 1,044 data points, 2012–2022
Last refreshed

The price of 100 packs of cigarettes as a share of GDP per capita. This price is based on the most-sold brand of cigarettes in a given country and includes taxes. Lower values indicate that cigarettes are more affordable.