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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.