Actual cost of ecigs compared to cigarettes

[john333]

my provari starter kit is two years old now so the average daily cost is currently at .30 a day.
the boge carts I use I got in a group buy at .63 a cart. they have lasted on average 4.5 days so thats .14 a day
I make my liquids. I use 3ml a day with 1ml nic base. the nic cost .10 and flavors around .20
total about .75 a day. at those costs I can easily afford to pick up a ibtank or whatever I think I need and no longer worry about the cost since it is so much cheaper than buying a carton a cigs every 5 days ( I was a 2pad smoker ).
this past year I had one 4 month stretch were I didn't spend a dime. I'm stocking up this month and plan to see how long I can go without spending any money in 2014.
my advise to you is learn how to make your eliquids. do that and vaping will be very cheap. in the long run its the liquids that cost the most. good luck

 

[Wingsfan0310]

To echo what John said I make my own juice (as good or better than most stuff I bought) at less than $2 for 30ml and rebuild my mini and regular Protank II heads. Unless I go crazy buying equipment, it's about $2 a week now.

 

[Danbrooks2k]

I spent quite a bundle on BLU kits and BLU disposables. My first EGO kit was 19$ from a gas station with 5$ juice. I have since spent quite a bundle, say 500$. I would have spent 2 grand on smoking.

Now I spend a dollar a piece on coils and cartos and get 50mls of juice for 20$ from good life vapor. Once I have a bag of used coils I will buy some 32g kanthal. My high end daily cost is now 2$ a day compared to a minimum of 12$ a day not counting missing work from horrible upper respiratory infections made worse from smoking.

 

[evolutionx]

I've been vaping for a year and I put in about the same as you the first 2 months...then about 200 on high priced liquid from my brick n mortar over the next few months...then my cost dropped significantly when I decided to DIY. With nic & PG/VG (500ml each) it cost me 200-300 bucks for about a years worth of liquid. Full DIY liquids did not satisfy me completely so now I mix my DIY with store bought to my liking. I also use a EMINI so my atty's last months so that cost is not too high overall. So lets round it out, about $1,000+ spent on gear, atty's DIY and liquid supplies (2-3 ml per day consumption) vs. @ $7.00 a pack PAD for a year thats roughly $2300 a year....its easily less expensive. Just to break even I could purchase ANOTHER years worth of gear and more juice and atty's. God I love Vaping (and so does my wallet and my wife haha)

I break it down like this....90 mls of halo juice ($60) now add my DIY liquid cost for 90 mls ($5-10)...now I mix the two together to make 180 mls at a cost of $70 bucks which is a carton of Newports basically. Max I use 3mls per day / 180=60 days or 2 months worth of vaping vs. 10 days of smoking. Its insane to smoke!!!!!

 

[stillnotsmoking]

For me personally in the beginning I was like you, spend spend spend. I have since found my "perfect vape" and all that spending has stopped, and I sold off pretty much everything else I had ever purchased. Combine that with switching to vaping unflavored eliquid and rebuilding my own coils the costs have dropped to nearly nothing. Of course I now use that extra money to feed other hobbies

 

[lkim65]

I smoked 1 1/2 packs a day or a carton a week. Smoking cost was approx. $200 per month. My average costs for vaping is $70 per month. So my monthly savings is around $130.

 

[Bobcat39]

I have definitely spent a good dollar since I started, but I'm not too worried. My hardware costs will go down moving forward, as well as juice costs. It's fun in the beginning to try everything out. I kind of went through the same spending spree years ago when I got into Cuban Cigars. The cost of cigarettes in Canada willmake my 'break even' day come faster than it does south of the 49th parallel.

 

[YKruss]

In 4 and a half years:
I didn't spend $9,411 on cigarettes (see my signature).
I spent about $3,000 on e-cigs and juice (started DIY a year ago)

Am i happy? You bet!!!
Money saved and my health is much better!

 

[wonner]

The topic is so diverse that it defies a single answer.

An NYC pack-a-day smoker will spend $24,000 over 5 years. If they make DIY juice, they've easily got 20K to save or spend on PVs.

Someone buying cheap smokes in a low-tax state but chain vaping Five Pawns juice is going to have a hard time breaking even.

 

[Traver]

There are two distinct components to vaping. There is vaping and there is the hobby of vaping.
I mix my own juice and my vaping costs are less than $20 per month. I use a Vision mini nova for juice delivery. Two of them plus five heads were about $35. I burn the heads when I need to and expect them to last about a year that is included in the $20 a month. I bought a provari when it first came out and till use it every day. The provari and batteries was about a $200 investment to be amortized over it's lifetime. Add that any you like.

As to the cost for my hobby and the collection of PV's and flavors that I will never use. That might be bit more. I don't want to even think about what that costs.

I don't think it is unusual for a beginner to spend $500 to a $1,000 just to figure out what works. After that it is their choice on how much they want to spend. I am not going to compare the cost of tobacco because it is so different and depends on where you are.

 

[WileECoyote]

As my wife put it for me. The point to vaping for me was not to save money, it was to quit smoking. That is priceless.

 

[CommaHolly]

I spent close to 200 bucks a month on cigarettes,,,,,,

I now spend about 20 bucks a month vaping, probably,,,,,,,,I DIY juice though, which turned out to be ridiculously cheap and quite easy (if you like single flavor fruits like I do, it's ridiculously easy and cheap to do),,,,,,,and I use Iclear 30 tanks and get about 2 months out of a coil,,,,,,,,,,

I'm going to buy a Provari after Christmas, so that's a cost,,,,,,,,,and of course, the replaceable batteries once or twice a year,,,,,

but all in all, it's far cheaper for me now.

In the beginning, it's more expensive,,,,,,and if you get addicted to buying mods THAT can be expensive

 

[drivesbarefoot]

I really enjoyed reading your breakdown of the cost of things. I haven't had the guts to check my initial spending, but my guess is close to $1000 in the first two months. I spent about $150/month on analogs prior. I started out with the cheap kits, advanced to ego's and then had to deal with chargers not working anymore, ego's breaking or just not working right, threads not working anymore, etc. I bought a whole bunch of cheap clearo's that just never did work right and for the cost I paid for those could have bought a couple really good tanks. I bought 5 ego twists and only two are still working. Then of course juices, some of which were great, some ok, but then as I vaped more I realized the "ok" ones were actually not good at all, so now I have those collecting dust. It seems like it's a learning curve everyone goes through.

When I first started vaping and reading this forum experienced vapers were saying just cut out the cheap stuff, go for the tried and true quality things even though they may seem expensive. I really wanted to do that but just couldn't justify it but now wish I had in terms of money spent. Since I bought a Provari over a month ago my ordering and shopping for things has virtually stopped because it's working out perfectly for me. I started DIY which has helped too. I could have bought two Provari's with a good tank and come out ahead if I'd done it at the beginning. One thing to say about that however, is you don't know how good something is unless you have something lesser to compare it to, so my "field research" wasn't totally in vain!

 

[Don Robertson]

After the initial investment - which can be (was for me) at my local shop - so i could SEE how use the dang "tools" - I'll save money over the real deal smokes.

KANGER T3S ----------------------------------------------$ 9.95
eGo-C Upgrade 650Mah Battery USB Passthrough--------- $22.95
10ml of "juice" ---------------------------------------------$ 6.00
Tax ------------------------------------------------------- $ 3.10

So............. to get going I put out right at $42.00. YES, I could have done it for LESS - but again I wanted that "personal touch" / "instruction" to get me going. After a LOT of research online, I found several sellers, well established and willing to speak with me on the telephone. So, I have settled on those - none had EVERYTHING I wanted, but using three and taking advantage of the :sales" (some ongoing such as Totally Wicked) I spent another $80.00 for additional Kanger T3S Clearomizers, spare coils, juice to HOPEFULLY last 3 months, spare batteries and a few holders. I MAY or may NOT like all the "sample pack juices", but I'll doctor them up and use what I have; no tossing it out.

All in all I have spent roughly $120.00 and should be set for roughly 3 months (I will see). Over the same 3 months I would have spent approximately and AT LEAST $130.00 on GENERIC CIGARETTES off the local Indian Reservation cigarettes (NATIVE 100's - Made in New York (where e-cigs are called "bad for the CHILDREN - just like guns!).

After 51 YEARS of smoking WITHOUT EVER REALLY QUITTING the real deal AND ANOTHER 20 YEARS of smoking with only TWO YEARS TOTAL OFF OF Pall Mall and Camel until the GOVERNMENT TAXED THEM TO RAISE REVENUE FOR IDIOTIC PROJECTS - I am free of all the chemicals SINCE November 18th. I HAVE SMOKED FOR OVER 71 YEARS TOTAL +/- a few months!

Yea, I had a few real smokes when I THOUGHT the e-cigs were not doing it for me. The real deals tasted like garbage! The ASHTRAY I keep around as a reminder - STINKS. I coughed, gagged, wheezed and felt like crud after the 5:00 AM smoke I HAD TO HAVE! NOW? I don't do any of those things!

I am at LEAST EVEN as far as the cost ........ and I feel better! That's ALL I care about! To heck with GOVERNMENT and their concerns over what amounts to ONLY LOST TAXES! That is what they REALLY CARE ABOUT! That and keeping their POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS rolling in at election time! Like guns - they say it is "ABOUT THE CHILLUN" and how they will move on to REAL SMOKES! That is GARBAGE! The DRUG and TOBACCO COMPANIES want to CONTROL E-CIGS! The government wants TAXES and POLITICIANS WANT CONTRIBUTIONS! Screw 'em all!

Breaking even on cost is GOOD! It may get better - it may even increase! I don't care! I FEEL BETTER! Yep - I KNEW REAL SMOKES were BAD and I SMOKED anyway! MY STUPID FAULT! I BELIEVE E-CIGS WILL help MY health AND maybe save me a few bucks! I WOULD RATHER GIVE MY MONEY TO THE AMERICAN RETAILERS WHO SELL E-CIGS THAN TO THE GOVERNMENT WHO SCREWS US ON A DAILY BASIS!

I know ....... way off topic and I apologize. I am simply SO PASSIONATE in my disgust with LYING POLITICIANS and a CROOKED GOVERNMENT AS A WHOLE that I go off on tangents! In the end -- I WILL SAVE or I WILL SPEND MORE! I don't care! I LIKE E-CIGS! Cost be damned!

From Senility Central and on my NINTH DECADE of LIFE ............. Old Man Don

 

[soberlife1]

I make my own juice. A 30 ML bottle costs about $1 to produce, maybe less. There are still hardware costs, but I've bought an RBA, bought a spool of wire, and a bunch of silica. After this investment (including mod) for approximately $250, I have 1 quart PG, 1 quart VG, 250ml 100mg/ml nicotine, a nice mod, bunches of coil and silica (no more buying atomizers/cartomizers/clearomizers), and I have enough juice and hardware to last me many of months.

Shop smart. It's easy to overspend with all these vendors around. Do research on everything before you buy it.

 

[eVic Maestro]

I used to spend roughly $300/month on cigarettes (at $8 per package).

My initial investment in vaping gear was about $200 for an eVic, a Kanger Pro tank and assorted liqiuds. The following month I spent another $300 on various pre-mixed liquids, base liquids, aromas, mixing gear (measures, bottles, syringes etc.) and atomizers. I like to keep a stock of the things that I use, so I'm sure I'll never run dry

Many of the pre-mixed liquids and aromas I bought during the first month or two were awful, but at least now I know what I like and what I don't like.

I started mixing my liquids myself within the first couple of weeks, so that helps keep the cost down. I guess I'm now spending around $40/month on vaping gear and liquid/aroma, so that's a healthy saving I can see in my bank account every month. I actually started having money left over every month

 

[billbryant78]

I'm only 4 months in and have spent about $1500. 4 mods, lots of tanks, lots of juice and a few RBAs. I put together a spreadsheet that helps keep track of what I'm spending, how much I'm saving from not smoking analogs and what my break even point is. It works pretty well for me. I put it up on my website, for all those that like to geek out over this stuff.

eCig Cost Savings Tracker - Mr. Nice Vape

 

[Texaslimo]

Wow.. I am almost scared to put this in print. I have spent MUCH more vaping than smoking. Sort of. In terms of actual dollars yes and absolutely. Looking across my desk and my girlfriends I see no less than eight mods and assorted tanks and atomizers. That does not count all the stuff I have given away to get others started. The mitigating end of the situation is that while I have spent probably a years worth of analog stinky budget in four months, I have supplied myself, my girlfriend, her mother, her daughter and husband with multiple complete setups and various quantities of juice.
I have mostly the lower end items in relation to money spent, but I do have a couple of high end pieces and I have to say that most of the time, it is indeed worth the money. The quality is much better. Not always though as I paid $50 for one setup that works just as well as the $250 one sitting next to it. At this point, the spending is winding down and my girlfriend has begun mixing our own juice so in the long run it may even out.

As a side note, that one year's worth of stinky budget has allowed five people to either quit completely or get on the road to that end.. $$ well spent!!

 

[K_Tech]

Wow.. I am almost scared to put this in print. I have spent MUCH more vaping than smoking. Sort of. In terms of actual dollars yes and absolutely. Looking across my desk and my girlfriends I see no less than eight mods and assorted tanks and atomizers. That does not count all the stuff I have given away to get others started. The mitigating end of the situation is that while I have spent probably a years worth of analog stinky budget in four months, I have supplied myself, my girlfriend, her mother, her daughter and husband with multiple complete setups and various quantities of juice.
I have mostly the lower end items in relation to money spent, but I do have a couple of high end pieces and I have to say that most of the time, it is indeed worth the money. The quality is much better. Not always though as I paid $50 for one setup that works just as well as the $250 one sitting next to it. At this point, the spending is winding down and my girlfriend has begun mixing our own juice so in the long run it may even out.

As a side note, that one year's worth of stinky budget has allowed five people to either quit completely or get on the road to that end.. $$ well spent!!

Oh, you're not alone. Right now, if my math brain cell is working properly, if I don't spend another penny on vaping (which is HIGHLY unlikely) I'll break even next summer.

 

[ut1205]

If I had been purchasing "commercial" cigarettes with my 2 PAD habit I would have broken even long ago but when cigs hit $2 per pack I started doing RYO cigs. After an inital investment of about $100 my cigs were about $1.00 per pack. At 2 PAD that was about $750 per year. I estimate that in the past 4 months that is about what I have spent on e-cigs. I'm not into the various "mods" (have several Spinners, Twist, and regular Egos) and this is the first month that I am having trouble finding "vape stuff" to spend money on.

I started mixing my own juices about a month ago and have been making my own Evod coils for about 2 months. As of now I am at the point where I can just start replacing consumables and hardware that wears out or breaks.

One thing that I am sure of is that at some point in the near future, due to coming taxes, a bottle of juice or the nic it contains will equal the price of a pack of cigs. Therefore, starting next month I will begin to "stockpile" nic to last several years into the future.

I really enjoy not having to spend the time required each day to RYO.