Most of EcoSmok's coverage of 2026 vaping law has looked at duty, age checks and promotional rules for adult customers. Underneath it sits a question regulators keep returning to: how many children and teenagers vape, and has anything changed. Two pieces of research published this year, one covering Great Britain and one focused on Scotland, give a detailed, current answer, and it is more nuanced than either the alarming or the reassuring headlines suggest.
Why youth vaping is back in the spotlight
The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, handing the government new powers to restrict vape advertising, packaging and branding, and in store displays designed to catch a child's eye. Those powers exist because of sustained concern about youth uptake, and ASH, Action on Smoking and Health, has tracked the figures through its annual Smokefree GB Youth Survey since 2021.
The 2026 edition, carried out by YouGov between 3 April and 6 May among 2,926 respondents aged 11 to 17 across Great Britain, is the first full survey to cover a complete year of the disposable vape ban, which took effect on 1 June 2025. ASH published its headline findings on 29 May 2026 and a fuller fact sheet in June. The Scottish Government published its own analysis of Scottish respondents on 11 August 2026, giving a devolved nation breakdown the GB wide figures alone cannot show.
What the 2026 survey data shows
Across Great Britain, 19 percent of 11 to 17 year olds say they have tried vaping at some point, around 1.1 million young people. Most are not regular users: 10 percent, about 590,000, have only tried it once or twice, and 82 percent have never vaped. Of those who currently vape, 6 percent of all 11 to 17 year olds, about 370,000, roughly a third vape daily, 2 percent of the whole age group.
Age makes a large difference. Among 11 to 15 year olds, 13 percent have ever tried vaping and 4 percent currently vape. Among 16 and 17 year olds, those figures roughly double, to 32 percent ever tried and 13 percent currently vaping. The trend is a sharp rise followed by a plateau, not a steady climb. Ever trying vaping rose from 11 percent in 2021 to around 20 percent by 2023 and has held at 18 to 20 percent since. Current vaping rose from 3 percent in 2021 to 7 percent in 2022, and has stayed between 6 and 7 percent in every survey since, including 7 percent in 2025 and 6 percent in 2026.
How device choice has shifted since the ban
The headline vaping rate has barely moved, but what young vapers actually use has changed completely, largely as a direct result of the disposable vape ban. Our own one year review of the disposable ban covered the wider market effect; the table below focuses specifically on the ASH youth survey's device breakdown.
| Year | Disposables as main device among young vapers | What replaced them |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 (peak) | 69 percent | Disposables dominant; other device types a minority |
| 2025 | 42 percent | Early shift underway ahead of the June 2025 ban |
| 2026 | 13 percent | Cartridge devices now most common at 51 percent, tank devices 21 percent |
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Shop NowWhere under 18s say they get vapes
Among current young vapers in the GB survey, shops remain the single most common usual source, named by 47 percent. Around a fifth usually get vapes informally, through friends or other people, and about 9 percent usually buy online. A separate figure covers how young people got their very first vape, rather than where they usually get one now: 72 percent say they were given it by someone, most often a friend, rather than buying it themselves. Only 1.4 percent say their first vape came directly from a vape company.
That pattern points at enforcement and compliance rather than a gap in the law. Selling a vaping product to anyone under 18 has been illegal across the UK since 2015, and gifting does not require a retailer to break any rule at all. It is why the age verification and proxy purchasing offence taking effect on 29 October 2026, covered in our earlier article on the new age verification law, focuses heavily on stopping adults buying on a child's behalf, not only on checking ID at the till.
Is the picture the same across Great Britain?
Scottish Government research published on 11 August 2026, based on 767 respondents aged 11 to 17, found that 5.6 percent currently vape, roughly one in 18, close to the GB wide figure. Scotland's rate moved from 7.4 percent in 2024 to 7.3 percent in 2025 to 5.6 percent in 2026, a difference the researchers describe as not statistically significant given the sample size.
- Current vaping rises sharply with age: 3.7 percent at 14, 4.7 percent at 15, climbing to 14.1 percent at 16 and 11.1 percent at 17.
- Among current young vapers surveyed, rechargeable devices were used by 31 of 46, against 10 using disposables, a similar shift to the GB wide figures.
- 34 of those 46 said they usually bought from a regulated outlet, while 76 percent of everyone who had ever tried a vape said they were given their first one by someone they knew.
- Exposure to promotion remains high: 54.8 percent had seen vape advertising in shops and 27.1 percent online, most often on TikTok.
What this means for retailers and shoppers
None of this suggests vaping should be harder for the adults it is meant for, smokers looking for a less harmful alternative. It does mean every retailer carries real responsibility for keeping products away from anyone underage.
- EcoSmok verifies the age of every customer before a sale completes, and our Age Verification page sets out exactly how that works.
- Our Youth & Underage Concerns page covers the wider legal picture for parents, carers and anyone worried about underage access.
- Buying a vape as an adult to pass on to someone under 18 is proxy purchasing, carrying stronger penalties once the new offence takes effect on 29 October 2026.
- Choosing a refillable pod kit with nic salt refills, rather than passing on an unwanted disposable, keeps products out of the wrong hands.
How the 2026 picture built up
- 1 June 2025The UK's ban on disposable vapes takes effect, the backdrop against which this year's youth survey data is measured.
- 29 April 2026The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 receives Royal Assent, giving the government new powers over vape marketing, packaging and displays.
- 3 April to 6 May 2026YouGov carries out fieldwork for the 2026 ASH Smokefree GB Youth Survey, interviewing 2,926 respondents aged 11 to 17.
- 29 May 2026ASH publishes its headline finding that disposable vape use among young vapers fell sharply during the first year of the ban.
- 11 August 2026The Scottish Government publishes its own analysis of Scottish respondents to the same survey.
- 24 October 2026Five days remain before the UK wide age verification and nicotine pouch age laws take effect.
- 29 October 2026The age verification and proxy purchasing offence, and the nicotine pouches and zero nicotine vapes age law, both take effect.
Frequently asked questions
How many young people in the UK vape in 2026?
According to the 2026 ASH Smokefree GB Youth Survey, 19 percent of 11 to 17 year olds in Great Britain have tried vaping, around 1.1 million young people. 6 percent currently vape, about 370,000, and 2 percent vape daily, about 140,000.
Has youth vaping gone up or down since the disposable vape ban?
The overall current vaping rate among 11 to 17 year olds has held fairly steady, moving from around 7 percent in 2022 to 6 percent in 2026, rather than falling sharply. What has changed is the type of device used. Disposables made up 69 percent of young vapers' main device at their 2023 peak, fell to 42 percent in 2025 and dropped further to 13 percent in 2026, after the ban on disposable vapes.
Where are under 18s getting vapes from?
Shops remain the most common usual source, reported by 47 percent of current young vapers in the GB survey. Around a fifth usually get vapes informally, from friends or other people, and about 9 percent usually buy online. Separately, 72 percent of everyone who has ever tried vaping said they were given their first one, most often by someone they knew.
Why can under 18s still buy vapes from shops if it is illegal?
It reflects a mix of non compliant retailers and underage customers managing to pass themselves off as adults, rather than a gap in the law. Selling vaping products to anyone under 18 has been illegal in the UK since 2015, and from 29 October 2026 a strengthened UK wide age verification and proxy purchasing offence takes effect. Responsible retailers, including EcoSmok, verify that every customer is old enough to buy before completing a sale.
Is youth vaping different in Scotland compared with the rest of Great Britain?
Scottish Government research published in August 2026 found that about 5.6 percent of 11 to 17 year olds in Scotland currently vape, roughly one in 18, broadly similar to the 6 percent GB wide figure. Scotland's survey also found a sharp rise with age, from under 4 percent at 14 and 15 to around 11 to 14 percent at 16 and 17.
What is the government doing about youth vaping?
The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, gives the government powers to restrict vape advertising and sponsorship, packaging and branding, and in store displays designed to attract children. From 29 October 2026, a UK wide age verification and proxy purchasing offence and a new age law covering nicotine pouches and zero nicotine vapes both take effect.
Explore more
Age Verification Law
The UK wide rules taking effect on 29 October 2026.
Disposable Ban, One Year On
What the wider market data shows since the ban.
Age Verification
How we check every order is going to an adult.
Youth & Underage Concerns
Information for parents and carers.
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