Cost of snusing in the long run

[ShaulWolf]

I was reading posts in another thread that went over the cost of snus vs other tobacco. Really interesting stuff, so I thought I'd make a separate thread just for it. I'll be using a typical tin of large portions with 24 portions for reference; someone else can post about what it'd be for los. I'll also be leaving out shipping charges for simplicity since that varies a lot and isn't too hard to mentally add on yourself.

Ainkor really showed it in his post with:

I spend an incredibly lower amount of cash on tobacco than I used to.

$7.50 per day MINIMUM on smokes, even if I bought cartons (The reality is that I always spent more. Gum, some chips etc etc)

$52.50 per week

$223 per month

$2705 per year

times 1.5 since my wife smokes (about half of what I used to)

$4063 per year on tobacco.....

Now:

About $50 per month on tobacco for me

About $75 per month for my wife (she smokes about a half a pack a day and uses Oliver Twists when we game together or when she is at work)

$1500 per year

73.1 % drop in our tobacco budget!

That's a whole lot of extra cash, especially if you're in college. My ex smokes, and a pack a day in Charleston, SC is about $3.75, or was over the summer.

At that price you can buy yourself a can of snuff, which will last me two weeks. For someone like sagedil that's two days worth. That's still twice the mileage out of your money.

I didn't smoke cigarettes; I smoked cigars. Even then, that's still cheaper.

When I smoked cigars every day things really added up. Say a typical Sancho Panzo, which is a lower priced but decent cigar. $4.

That's at least $28 a week. More like $36 since I tend to smoke two on weekends, but we'll just say $28 for now.

$28 x 52 = $1456 on cigars every year. That is a lot of money.

Then I dropped it down to once a week. Not as bad by a long shot.
$4 x 52 = $208

Definitely not nearly as much, but who said I'd smoke a Sancho Panzo if I'm only smoking once a week? No, I'll take a more expensive premium cigar, which is more like $7-9. Good 'ol Padrons or Romeo y Julietas.
$7-9 x 52 = $364 - 468

Again, not as bad.

Then compare to my snus usage. Things vary here, but say 1.5 tins every 2 weeks. I'll say I'm using a pricier snus and say it's $3.80 per tin.

1.5 tins every 2 weeks comes out to about $5.70 worth of snus every 2 weeks.
That makes it $2.85 a week.
$2.85 x 52 = $148.20 a year.

That's still less than if I smoked a low priced cigar once a week. That's a ton more than if I smoked a cigar daily. I'm not even going to think about if I smoked more than a pack a day.

Yeah, this is definitely easier on my wallet, and a lot better overall for me.

[sagedil]

My off the cuff savings I have always told people was about 70% compared to when i quit cigarettes. Saving tobacco taxes is part of that, but it just takes far less snus to cover my needs than cigarettes.

Now I am giving a small piece of that back to snuff.

[Starcadia]

Bought a pack of premium cigarettes for a friend the other day in downtown D.C. for about $6.25. I was shocked. That same amount keeps me in snus for a week.

[lxskllr]

I used to spend $15 for a tin a American Spirit every week. Now I use about 1 tin of lös, 1 tin of portions, and some snuff. Maybe about $7 per week.

[mercvrivs]

Here are some cost projections for loose vs. cigarettes, based on my own consumption:

Cost per can:
I use mainly Offroad and Phantom with some General XS Portions for meetings and sleep. My own cost per can probably averages to somewhere around 2.75, but I'm going to run these calculations at $3.00 per can, which more than accounts for shipping costs and is slightly over-estimating.

Cigarette Expenses:
When I smoked, I smoked a little over one pack per day. At $5.00 per pack, I spent about $40.00 to purchase 6 packs per week. That means I spent $160.00 per month, which yields expenses of $1,920.00 per year.

Snus Expenses:
I use a can of loose every two to two-and-a-half days (but we'll use two for the purposes of these calculations). That's 4 cans per week (which leaves me with extra), which would be $12.00. $48.00 per month would buy my snus for the month, which equals $576.00 per year.

Conclusions:
$1,920-$576=$1344 in savings. Keep in mind that I use a lot of loose, so for those who use less, the savings can be even more pronounced. Loose is a lot cheaper than portions because you receive much more snus per tin.

Good thread, by the way! I've never actually worked out the specific calculations before; it's nice to see! I basically get three months rent or car insurance paid for by not smoking!

[Kerprodo]

Actually this is one of the things that helps me not crave cigs, (don't think about them much, but still occasionally get a craving) think about spending $4 bucks for a pack - and I'm in a cheap tobacco state, figure I'd smoke em within a day and a half, or could buy a can of snus plus have change and probably get minimum of three days out of it, probably more since I split portion and loose about 50/50.
Myself I'm still amazed how little this habit costs compared to my smoking or dip days. Since March, my official changeover date, I've only spent about $500-550 dollars, and that includes an Icetool and a can of Kardus.
Figure even for the most hardcore smoker they would save 50%, unless you could manage to down a can a day of snus, even then you would still realize a fairly hefty savings over the year and I really doubt most of us could consume a can of any snus in a day, even with portions thats a portion every 30 minutes for twelve hours straight.

[Ainkor]

shhhhhh dammit!!

They will start taxing it or charging more so they make just as much as before!

Jesting aside, I investigated oral tobacco for about a year before I took the plunge.

In addition to the cash savings, the health benefits are what really put me over the top.

Less cash + less risk = WIN!

Different people are motivated by different reasons and I have used this with a few of my smoking friends.

People rarely quit anything for health reasons. Show them the cash and they sit right up and pay attention!

-Ainkor

[mercvrivs]

If they did that then they would probably lose customers and money.

[thehustler]

I don't think it's fair to count your gum purchases in cigarettes when doing this comparison. However, there ARE savings for me.

Cigarettes (natural spirit) 1 pack a day ~ $6 = $42 a week.

Snus - 6 portions a day ~ $1 a day. = $7 a week.

With that said, if my snus usage were to rise up (hopefully not) to a tin a day, it would be almost the same as cigarettes.

[deebocools]

my "Savings" were not as dramatic unfortunately. before snus, I discovered american dip that was good and costs as much as snus after shipping, and lasts slightly longer. For me it was a health act, though occasionally I do remind my smoking friends of the obcene cost of cigs.

I once figured out that with coffee(good), snus, and alcohol(the cheapest), my natural consumption works out to about 3.50 a day for me.

when my snus is out this time I will be at a crossroads. I might switch to nasal snuff to brace myself for the great depression 2. snuff is ridiculously cheap for the kick it can provide.

[TBD]

I used to smoke 1.5 packs of smokes a day. Average $4.25 a pack so that's $6.38 a day. Snus I use @12 portions a day average $3.00 a can so $1.50 a day.

$2328.70 a year for cigs.

$547.50 for snus.

Add another $100 for shipping I'm still down 70-75%.

Holy crap. Put that way I can afford a new AR!!!!!!!!
:shock: :shock:
Where is my wife? I need to go shopp

[NonEntity]

Like deebocools I am switching from an inexpensive dip to snus, so my cost savings are not my main motivation. I consumed 6 cans/week on average at about $2/can for $12/week.

I am mainly consuming premium snus and I am probably paying on average $3.50/portion can but my consumption is down to about 3 cans per week: $10.50/week.

This is still good news to me, I would have been willing to pay twice as much for a harm reduction product that kept my nicotine levels where I need them.

Oh, and TBD, if by AR you mean AR-15, that is my kind of thinking.

NonEntity

[ShaulWolf]

I started with Copenhagen dip, and the cost is comparable to buying snus. Actually, it's a little cheaper in SC than in NJ. Don't even think about buying tobacco in NY... The difference in taste and quality is dramatic for me, though. I really like the taste of Ettan, Grov, or Catch Eucalyptus over any American dip I've tried. I get more mileage out of loose dip, but I also switched to portioned snus and upped my intake. I'd still probably have gotten more mileage out of loose dip, so until I try out los snus I won't know for sure.

In any case, I'd take snus over dip. I enjoy it more, and the harm reduction is a definite plus.

On a different note, last I checked on cigarettes in NJ (August 2008) it was about $5.50 for a pack of Marlboro Lights. It's still cheaper for me to buy snus than it is to smoke cigarettes or cigars.

Hell, with the money I'd have spent on cigars I can save up for an HK45. Provided all the damn paperwork gets filed without a hitch. Stupid Jersey gun control laws. May just move to the Dakotas... Whole different thread for a different board though.

[TBD]

Oh, and TBD, if by AR you mean AR-15, that is my kind of thinking.

NonEntity

Yes, Yes I did mean Ar-15. Preferably of the Smith & Wesson variety. 8)

[spirit72]

Yeah, it all sounds about right. I figure I'm spending about 30% of what I used to spend on cigs per year, and I'm not paying tax to anyone's government. Yet.


I'll take it.