Young People

This section contains information about the patterns of e-cigarette (vape) use among Australian secondary school students who are under 18 years of age.

Data on Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years is derived from the 2022-23 Australian Secondary School Students’ Alcohol and Drug (ASSAD) Survey (Cancer Council Victoria, 2023).

Please note that the data reported in this section was collected prior to new legislation introduced in 2024 limiting the availability of e-cigarettes for purchase in Australia. As a result, usage trends may since have changed.

What proportion of Australian school students aged 12-17 years have ever tried e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23, 30% of Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years had ever vaped.

What proportion of Australian school students aged 12-17 years use e-cigarettes (or vapes) regularly?

In 2022/23, 16% of Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years had vaped at all in the past month. Regular vaping (defined as vaping at least 20 days out of the past month) was reported by 5%, and a further 3% vaped every day during the past month.

Has the proportion of Australian school students aged 12-17 years who use e-cigarettes (or vapes) changed over time?

National Australian data indicate that vaping has been increasing over time among Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years. In 2014, 13% of secondary students had ever vaped and 3% had done so in the past month, compared to 30% and 16% in 2022/23, respectively.

There is preliminary data indicating that vaping among young people has started to decrease again, following the introduction of new laws in 2024 (see FAQ What are the laws regarding e-cigarette (or vapes) in Australia?).

Source: Cancer Council Victoria (2023). ASSAD 2022–2023: Australian secondary school students’ use of tobacco and e-cigarettes.

Please note: caution should be exercised when interpreting the trend between 2017 and 2022/23 due to changes in survey methodology, additional time lag between the 2017 – 2023/23 surveys (due to COVID-19), data collection being spread across two academic school years in 2022/23, and the smaller number of schools and students included in the 2022/23 sample.

Are male or female Australian school students aged 12-17 years more likely to use e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23, female secondary school students aged 12-17 years were significantly more likely than male students to report ever vaping (35% vs 25%), vaping in the past month (19% vs 13%), regular vaping (20+ times in the past month) (6% vs 4%), and daily vaping (4% vs 2%).

Source: Cancer Council Victoria (2023). ASSAD 2022–2023: Australian secondary school students’ use of tobacco and e-cigarettes.

Please note: This FAQ uses data from the Australian Secondary Students’ Alcohol and Drug Survey, in which differences were considered significant at p<0.01. “Other” and “not stated” genders were excluded from analyses due to small numbers.

Are younger or older Australian school students aged 12-17 years more likely to use e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23, Australian secondary school students aged 16-17 years were significantly more likely than younger students (aged 12-15 years) to report ever vaping (43% vs 24%), vaping in the past month (22% vs 13%), regular vaping (20+ times in the past month) (8% vs 3%), and daily vaping (6% vs 2%).

Source: Cancer Council Victoria (2023). ASSAD 2022–2023: Australian secondary school students’ use of tobacco and e-cigarettes.

Please note: This FAQ uses data from the Australian Secondary Students’ Alcohol and Drug Survey, in which differences were considered significant at p<0.01.  

At what age do Australian school students aged 12-17 years begin to use e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23 among Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who have ever vaped, most used an e-cigarette for the first time when they were 13 years old (23%) or younger (23%).

What types of e-cigarette (or vape) do Australian school students aged 12-17 years use?

In 2022/23, most Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who had vaped in the past month typically used a disposable vaping device (80%). Two percent used a pod device (e.g. a JUUL device) and 3% reported using another type of device (e.g. an e-cigarette that uses replaceable cartridges or a device with a refillable tank). Fifteen percent of students didn’t know what type of device they used most often.

Where do Australian school students aged 12-17 years obtain e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23, most Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who had ever vaped obtained their last e-cigarette from a friend (60%), and 45% indicated that their friend was under 18 years of age. Twelve percent of students bought the e-cigarette themselves, 7% got it from a sibling, and 7% got someone else to buy it for them.

Of those who bought their own e-cigarette, the largest proportion purchased it from a vape shop (29%), while other sources included the internet (20%), a tobacconist/tobacco shop (12%) or a dealer (10%).

How many Australian school students aged 12-17 years use e-cigarettes (or vapes) concurrently with tobacco cigarettes?

In 2022/23, 3% of secondary school students aged 12-17 years reported both smoking cigarettes and vaping in the past month. Dual use of tobacco cigarettes and vapes was more likely among older (5%) than younger (2%) students.

How many Australian school students aged 12-17 years smoked tobacco prior to using e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 2022/23 among Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who had ever vaped, most (69%) had never smoked a tobacco cigarette at the time they first tried vaping. Of these students, 20% reported tobacco smoking (at least a few puffs) at some point after they tried vaping.

How many Australian school students aged 12-17 years are susceptible to using e-cigarettes (or vapes) in the future?

In 2022/23, 15% of Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who had never vaped before indicated that they were open to vaping in the future (i.e. when asked about their intention to vape in the next 12 months, they gave a response other than “certain not to be vaping”). Female students were more likely than male students to be open to vaping in the future (21% vs 11%, respectively).

How difficult do Australian school students aged 12-17 years find it to stop using e-cigarettes (or vapes)?

In 20223/23, approximately one third (35%) of Australian secondary school students aged 12-17 years who had vaped in the past month reported that they would experience some difficulty in stopping.