USA: Nicotine Pouches

October 2026: Surging Demand for Nicotine Pouches Lifts U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Category to $13.6 Billion

Driven by strong consumer adoption of modern oral nicotine pouches, U.S. convenience store sales of smokeless tobacco expanded 11.6% year-over-year to $13.6 billion. Overall category performance was bolstered by an 8.2% gain in unit volume, reaching 1.86 billion units, alongside a 3.1% increase in the average price per unit to $7.31

Product	Dollar Sales	1-Year % Change	Category Share	1-Year pp Change	Unit Sales	1-Year % Change	Unit Price	1-Year % Change
Spitless Tobacco	$7.53 B	24.7%	55.28	5.80	1.16 B	22.1%	$6.51	2.1%
Snuff	$5.95 B	-1.0%	43.71	-5.54	687 M	-8.8%	$8.67	8.5%
Chewing Tobacco	$138 M	-11.60%	1.01	-0.26	19.1 M	-8.6%	$7.24	-3.3%
Smokeless Tobacco	$13.6 B	11.6%	100.00	0.00	1.86 B	8.2%	$7.31	3.1%

Spitless tobacco – led by tobacco-free nicotine pouches – continued to serve as the dominant growth engine, cementing its position as the largest segment in the market. Revenue for spitless items surged 24.7% to $7.53 billion, raising its overall market dollar share by 5.8 percentage points to 55.3%. Volume for the subcategory climbed 22.1% to 1.16 billion units, supported by a mild 2.1% price gain to $6.51. Accelerating retail traction reflects shifting consumer preferences toward discreet, smokeless, and spit-free formats across c-store counters nationwide.

Conversely, legacy smokeless formats faced ongoing volume erosion. Dollar sales for snuff (moist dip) fell 1.0% to $5.95 billion, causing its share of the category to shrink by 5.5 percentage points to 43.7%. Snuff unit shipments declined 8.8% to 687 million units, though an 8.5% hike in average unit price – to $8.67 – helped mitigate broader revenue losses. Chewing tobacco – including chewing tobacco alternatives – recorded the sharpest downturn, with annual turnover dropping 11.6% to $138 million. The decline stemmed from an 8.6% pull-back in unit sales down to 19.1 million units, coupled with a 3.3% reduction in average price per unit to $7.24.

September 2026: Nicotine Pouches Propel U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Sales to $13.5 Billion

Total U.S. convenience store sales for the smokeless tobacco category surged 12.2% year-over-year to $13.5 billion over the 52-week period ending July 12, 2026. Category growth was solely driven by rapidly expanding consumer demand for spitless oral nicotine pouches, pushing overall unit volume up 9.3% to 1.86 billion units while the category average unit price rose 2.6% to $7.26.

Product	Dollar Sales	1-Year % Change	Dollar Share	1-Year pp Change	Unit Sales	1-Year % Change	Unit Price	1-Year % Change
Spitless Tobacco	$7.41 B	25.9%	54.8	6.0	1.15 B	24.3%	$6.44	1.3%
Snuff	$5.97 B	-0.6%	44.2	-5.7	692 M	-8.5%	$8.62	8.6%
Chewing Tobacco	$139 M	-11.4%	1.0	-0.3	19.2 M	-8.4%	$7.25	-3.0%
Smokeless Tobacco	$13.5 B	12.2%	100.0	0.0	1.86 B	9.3%	$7.26	2.6%

Spitless tobacco – dominated by modern tobacco-free nicotine pouches – solidified its position as the primary growth engine and now represents the majority of the category. Dollar sales for spitless products jumped 25.9% to $7.41 billion, expanding its dollar share of the smokeless market by 6.0 percentage points to 54.8%. Unit volume surged 24.3% to 1.15 billion units, while average unit prices saw a modest 1.3% uptick to $6.44. Rapid consumer adoption of nicotine pouches as a discreet, smoke-free, and spit-free alternative continues to drive growth across convenience counters nationwide.

In contrast, traditional smokeless segments continued their steady decline. Snuff (moist dip) dollar sales dipped 0.6% to $5.97 billion, with its category dollar share contracting 5.7 percentage points to 44.2%. Unit volume for snuff dropped sharply by 8.5% to 692 million units; however, aggressive price increases – rising 8.6% to $8.62 per unit – helped manufacturers insulate top-line dollar revenue from steeper contraction. Meanwhile, loose-leaf chewing tobacco experienced double-digit declines, with dollar sales falling 11.4% to $139 million on an 8.4% drop in unit volume to 19.2 million units and a 3.0% decline in average unit price to $7.25.

August 2026: Altria Accelerates On! Plus Expansion to Drive Growth in Expanding U.S. Nicotine Pouch Market

Altria is expanding the reach and product lineup of its On! brand to capitalize on accelerating demand within the U.S. nicotine pouch category. Supported by regulatory clearances and strong consumer off-take, the brand is positioning itself to gain momentum in an increasingly competitive landscape.

The nicotine pouch sector continued its rapid expansion in the second quarter of 2026, accounting for 59.9% of the overall oral tobacco category – an increase of 8.1 share points year-over-year and 1.8 share points sequentially. Against this backdrop, On! has demonstrated strong operational metrics: Brand awareness reached 57% among adult nicotine consumers aged 21–54 in the first half of 2026, up 4 percentage points from 53% in the first half of 2025. In terms of retail footprint, On! products are now available across 120,000 retail locations. Sequential off-take climbed from 40.2 million cans in Q4 2025 to 40.8 million cans in Q1 2026, reaching 47.2 million cans in Q2 2026. This incremental volume growth was driven entirely by the newly launched On! Plus product lineup.

On! held a 14.4% retail share of the nicotine pouch category in Q2 2026 – a sequential increase of 1.0 share point, though down 1.7 share points year-over-year. Altria aims to leverage the nationwide expansion of On! Plus alongside higher-strength (12mg) and broader flavored options, such as Blueberry Mint and Mango Pineapple, to reverse prior year-over-year share losses in the category.

Product Variant	Target Timeline	Geographic Footprint / Status
12mg Strengths	Q2 2026 → Q3 2026	Initial shipments in FL, NC, and TX; nationwide expansion in Q3
New Flavors	Q4 2026	Planned national market entry
On! & On! Plus Line Extensions	2027 & beyond	Additional product entries planned following initial authorizations

Regulatory developments continue to shape brand rollout timelines. Updated enforcement priorities from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have provided greater clarity for market participants. Following marketing authorizations granted by the FDA for six On! Plus products in December 2025, the brand established a regulatory foundation. These prior authorizations could create a viable pathway for faster supplemental Pre-Market Tobacco Application (PMTA) reviews for upcoming line extensions, enabling streamlined market entry for future product iterations.

August 2026: Nicotine Pouches Propel U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Sales Past $13.4 Billion

Driven by a strong consumer shift toward modern oral alternatives, retail turnover for the U.S. smokeless tobacco category across convenience stores reached $13.4 billion, reflecting a sharp 12.7% year-over-year increase. According to Circana data for the 52-week period ending June 14, total category unit volume expanded 10.0% to 1.86 billion units, while average unit prices rose 2.4% to $7.22.

Product Segment	Dollar Sales	1-Yr % Change	Dollar Share	1-Yr Share Change	Unit Sales	1-Yr % Change	Price Per Unit	1-Yr % Change
Smokeless Tobacco (Total)	$13.4 B	+12.7%	100.0%	0.0	1.86 B	+10.0%	$7.22	+2.4%
Spitless Tobacco	$7.29 B	+27.2%	54.4%	+6.2	1.14 B	+25.8%	$6.39	+1.1%
Snuff	$5.98 B	-0.5%	44.6%	-5.9	698 M	-8.3%	$8.57	+8.5%
Chewing Tobacco	$141 M	-11.3%	1.0%	-0.3	19.3 M	-8.5%	$7.32	-3.0%

The primary engine behind the category’s robust expansion is the rapid growth of spitless tobacco, which generated $7.29 billion in dollar sales – a 27.2% surge year-over-year. Unit sales within the segment jumped 25.8% to 1.14 billion units, bringing spitless offerings to a dominant 54.4% dollar share of the overall smokeless category (+6.2 percentage points). While the broader spitless category includes traditional tobacco pouches (which continue to decline in volume), overall segment growth is overwhelmingly driven by the dramatic rise in modern, tobacco-free nicotine pouch sales.

In contrast to the expanding spitless market, moist snuff – once the signature staple of traditional smokeless tobacco – is experiencing persistent revenue contraction. Dollar sales for snuff fell 0.5% to $5.98 billion, causing its category dollar share to drop 5.9 percentage points to 44.6%. Although manufacturers introduced an 8.5% price increase (raising average unit prices to $8.57), the higher pricing failed to offset an 8.3% contraction in unit volume (down to 698 million units).

Legacy smokeless segments continue to suffer steep declines, pushing traditional chewing tobacco and non-tobacco alternatives closer to obsolescence on convenience store shelves. Combined sales for chewing tobacco products dropped 11.3% to $141 million, driven by an 8.5% decline in unit sales to 19.2 million units alongside a 3.0% decline in unit price to $7.32. Chewing tobacco now represents barely 1% of total c-store smokeless revenue.

June 2026: U.S. Smokeless Growth Shifts Toward Nicotine Pouches Amid Intensifying Competition

The U.S. nicotine market remains heavily dominated by cigarettes in mainstream retail, though underlying trends continue to show gradual structural pressure. Cigarettes still account for about 71% of the $71.7 billion category, but sales declined 2.4% year over year in the 52 weeks ending May 30, according to NielsenIQ data.

Within this environment, smokeless nicotine is the second-largest segment at $11.6 billion in retail value and continues to outperform the broader market, growing more than 8% over the same period. However, performance within smokeless is increasingly bifurcated: declines in traditional formats such as moist smokeless tobacco (dips) and chewing tobacco are being more than offset by rapid double-digit growth in nicotine pouches.

Competitive dynamics are also shifting. Altria remains the category leader in smokeless with a 35% share, while Philip Morris International (through Swedish Match) has risen to 33%, narrowing the gap significantly on the back of ZYN’s expansion. However, PMI’s momentum has recently softened, with ZYN’s growth slowing from 12.7% over the last 52 weeks to around -1% in the most recent four-week period, reflecting intensifying competition from moist, slim pouch offerings – particularly BAT’s VELO Plus line.

In response to this slowdown, PMI is seeking to reinvigorate momentum through product innovation, including the launch of the ZYN Ultra range. Within PMI’s broader smokeless portfolio, performance remains uneven: with the exception of Longhorn snuff (+5.3%), legacy brands such as America’s Best Chew (-8.8%), Timber Wolf snuff (-2.5%), and General snus (-29.1%) continue to decline, underscoring the ongoing shift away from traditional smokeless formats toward nicotine pouches.

June 2026: U.S. Smokeless Market Continues to Pivot from Traditional Snuff to Nicotine Pouches

The U.S. smokeless segment is currently undergoing a massive structural shift driven by modern alternative products. According to Circana Total U.S. Convenience data for the 52 weeks ending March 22, 2026, total smokeless tobacco dollar sales reached $13.0 billion, reflecting a strong 13.1% increase over the previous year. Unit sales also posted strong double-digit growth, climbing 11.3% to 1.84 billion units, while the average price per unit crept up slightly by 1.6% to $7.09.

However, looking past the top-line numbers reveals a stark divide between modern modern innovations and traditional formats. The entire category’s momentum is being fueled heavily by the “spitless tobacco” subcategory – which includes modern oral nicotine pouches. This subcategory surged 29.5% in dollar sales to $6.89 billion, capturing a commanding 52.9% dollar share of the total smokeless category. Its unit sales tracked closely with this upward trajectory, gaining 29.2% to hit 1.10 billion units. This expansion highlights a massive consumer pivot toward cleaner, more discreet nicotine delivery methods.

In stark contrast, traditional smokeless products are losing their grip on the market:

– Snuff, which still commands a large 46% dollar share of the category, saw its dollar sales slip by 0.8% to $5.99 billion. More alarmingly, its unit sales plummeted by 8.0% down to 714 million. The discrepancy between flat dollar sales and declining units is explained by a substantial 7.8% spike in the price per unit, which rose to $8.39 as manufacturers leaned into pricing power to offset volume losses.

– Chewing Tobacco continued its long-term decline, with dollar sales dropping 9.7% to $142 million and unit sales falling 7.5% to 19.1 million. This occurred despite a 2.4% reduction in price per unit down to $7.46.

– Chewing Tobacco Alternatives occupy a tiny sliver of the market at a 0.02% share. This subcategory fell 14.4% in dollar sales to $3.12 million and suffered an 18.2% drop in unit sales down to 693,391, despite a 4.6% increase in price per unit to $4.51.

Ultimately, the Circana data underscores a balancing act within the broader nicotine landscape. As traditional tobacco products face shifting dynamics and stricter regulations, nicotine pouches have picked up the mantle. They are effectively sustaining the financial growth of the tracked convenience channels while cannibalizing heritage formats like snuff and chew.

May 2026: Finding the Pricing Sweet Spot – Is the U.S. Nicotine Pouch Market in a Race to the Bottom?

The nicotine pouch market in the United States is currently experiencing an intense wave of competition. More products are being introduced onto convenience store backbars every month, frequently accompanied by heavy discounting and aggressive promotions. Manufacturers are pulling out all the stops, using deep temporary price reductions and buy-one-get-one offers to capture premium shelf space from retailers and secure immediate consumer offtake as adult users establish their category habits. This aggressive environment looks dangerously like a “race to the bottom.”

A race to the bottom occurs when competitors in a rapidly growing market continually slash prices or pile on excessive discounts to undercut one another for short-term market share. While shoppers enjoy the cheap prices at first, it creates a destructive cycle for businesses. It erodes profit margins for both brands and retailers, and worse, it trains consumers to shop strictly for the lowest deal rather than valuing product quality or brand identity. Once those steep promotions are removed and prices return to normal, sales volumes often plummet because the product has been systematically devalued in the consumer’s eyes.

Despite the heavy couponing visible on retail shelves right now, the consensus among major manufacturers in aggregate is that they are actively working to avoid this downward pricing spiral. Rather than an out-of-control slide into discount mania, the industry views current promotions as highly strategic, temporary on-ramps. The goal is to drive initial trial, build brand awareness, and help adult smokers switch to smokeless alternatives. Instead of permanently lowering the value of the segment, manufacturers are focusing on disciplined revenue growth management – balancing smart pricing frameworks with targeted promotional strategies to maintain a premium product image while protecting top-line revenue.

To ensure the category doesn’t repeat the severe margin erosion seen in the vape market, retailers and brands are shifting toward value-added strategies. First, they are steering away from base price buy-downs, where promotional dollars simply drag down the everyday retail price of a single unit and permanently cheapen the product’s perceived worth. Instead, they are leveraging price-pack architecture by promoting multi-packs and bundled deals, which satisfies the consumer’s desire for value while increasing total basket size and volume per trip. Additionally, rather than relying on blanket in-store discounts, they are deploying targeted technology like mobile loyalty apps and digital retail media networks to deliver compliant, personalized offers to specific consumers without eroding base pricing on the shelf.

Ultimately, the biggest safeguard for the nicotine pouch segment comes down to market structure. The early vaping boom was a highly fragmented “wild west” crowded with thousands of small, independent, and often unregulated players who relied solely on price-slashing to fight for survival and shelf space. In stark contrast, for the time being, the U.S. oral nicotine pouch market is highly consolidated and dominated by a few massive, institutional manufacturers. This consolidation acts as a critical guardrail against a race to the bottom. These large entities possess the deep financial backing, sophisticated data infrastructure, and long-term strategic patience required to defend their profit margins. Because a handful of major companies control the vast majority of the backbar, they share a mutual interest in keeping the retail ecosystem healthy and highly profitable, allowing them to resist panic-driven price wars and sustain the category’s premium value over the long haul.

December 2025: Nicotine Pouch Growth Momentum Drives Further Manufacturing Investment in the U.S.

Reynolds American continues to add jobs in the Winston-Salem area with the announcement of 200 new manufacturing roles in 2026 at the expansive Reynolds Operations Center in Tobaccoville, N.C. The newly announced positions build on two years of significant growth for the organization. Reynolds added 800 jobs from 2024 to 2025, bringing total recent role additions to over 1,000. These new roles are added to support the growth of VELO Plus nicotine pouches and expand the multi-category nicotine portfolio. Reynolds American recently invested c.$200 million in its manufacturing facilities to drive growth in nicotine pouches and implement equipment upgrades. Reynolds American also has plans to expand its workforce in Clarksville, Tennessee, with an announcement pending.

Reynolds American Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of London-based, British American Tobacco (BAT) and the U.S. parent company of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, Inc., American Snuff Company, LLC, R.J. Reynolds Vapor Company, and Modoral Brands Inc.

Meanwhile, Jacksonville-based tobacco company, Swisher announced $135 million expansion in Springfield to produce nicotine and caffeine pouches sold under the Rogue and Mojo brands, respectively. The expansion is part of the automated pouch operation and is expected to create at least 240 full-time jobs by the end of 2027. Swisher states that the Company going through one of the most dynamic growth periods in its history. Swisher is the parent company of Swisher Sweets Cigar Co., Helme Tobacco Co., Hempire, Rogue Holdings and Drew Estate: The Rebirth of Cigars. Rogue Holdings sells 100% tobacco-leaf free and sugar-free nicotine products, called Rogue Nicotine on Demand, in the form of pouches, gum, lozenges and tablets.

December 2025: VELO Plus Growth Momentum Remains Intact in the U.S.

VELO Plus nicotine pouches continue to deliver exponential growth in the U.S. in terms of its consumer awareness, adoption and overall use. VELO-owner, British American Tobacco (BAT), underlines that VELO is the fastest-growing brand in the fastest-growing tobacco/nicotine segment in the U.S. VELO is now available in c.135,000 stores in the U.S., reflecting the distribution strength of BAT’s Reynolds American affliate.

December 2025: WiJo Pouches will Establish a Pouch Manufacturing Facility in the U.S.

Sweden-based WiJo Pouches, announced that the set-up of a pouch manufacturing facility in Lexington County, South Carolina. The Company will invest $13.5 million in the new facility, which is expected to generate 170 new jobs as it scales up production for the U.S. and wider regional market. WiJo will lease a 55,000-square-foot facility at 381 Burton Road, Lexington, where it will carry out contract manufacturing for brand owners seeking to enter or expand within the oral-pouch category. Operations are scheduled to come online in March 2026, marking a significant expansion of WiJo’s global manufacturing footprint and strengthening its capabilities to serve U.S. clients with domestic production capacity.

WiJo Pouches – headquartered in Sweden and operating globally through its platform wijopouches.com – positions itself as a full-service contract manufacturer specialising in next-generation oral pouches. The Company provides end-to-end solutions that include product prototyping, scalable industrial production, and market-compliance support. Its portfolio spans nicotine pouches, caffeine pouches, and functional-ingredient pouches to capitalized on the rising demand for alternative delivery formats across consumer-health and recreational-nicotine categories.

December 2025: Driven by Nicotine Pouches, Smokeless Tobacco Sales is up c.15% in the U.S.

In the 12-week period, ending October 5, 2025, total smokeless tobacco sales reached $3.05 billion retail turnover ($13.2 billion annual run-rate) in the U.S., according to the Circana data. Category sales increased 14.6% year-on-year basis, driven solely by the explosive growth in nicotine pouch sales (up more than 40% year-on-year basis).

Snuff (dip) sales volume declined by 6.9%, but retail turnover is up +0.9% thanks to strong pricing/mix (up +8.4% to $8.56 per unit). Meanwhile, spiteless tobacco (mostly, nicotine pouches) sales volume and value increased by 35.8% and 28.7%, respectively. The unit price is down 5.2% from $6.24 per unit to $5.92 per unit due to the intensifying promotional activity in nicotine pouches. In terms of subcategory mix, spitless tobacco is now substantially larger than snuff.

November 2025: Smokeless Tobacco Sales Growth is Driven by Nicotine Pouches in the U.S.

In the 52-week period, ending September 7, 2025, total smokeless tobacco sales reached $12.4 billion retail turnover in the U.S., according to the Circana data. Category sales increased 14% year-on-year basis, driven solely by the explosive growth in nicotine pouch sales.

Snuff (dip) sales volume and value declined by 8.5% and c.4%, respectively. Similarly, chewing tobacco sales volume declined c.8%. Snuff and chewing tobacco price/mix was up 5% and 1%, respectively, in the same period. Meanwhile, spiteless tobacco (mostly, nicotine pouches) sales volume and value increased by 31.5% and 44%, respectively. In terms of subcategory mix, spitless tobacco is closing in on snuff.

Subcategory	Sales (US$ billion)	Share	Share Change
Snuff	6.36	51.4%	-9.4pp
Spitless Tobacco	5.85	47.2%	+9.7pp
Chewing Tobacco	0.17	1.4%	-0.3pp

July 2025: Driven by Nicotine Pouches, OTP Same-store Sales is up by +7% in the U.S.

According to the National Association of Convenience Stores, OTP (Other Tobacco Products) sales averaged $19,663 per store per month in 2024, up +7% from 2023. OTP’s share of in-store sales virtually doubled from 4.2% in 2015 to 7.6% in 2024. While the smoking rates and cigarette consumption are at historic lows, non-combustible product alternatives – specifically, nicotine pouches – are on the rise and drive the same-store OTP sales higher.

July 2025: Online Nicotine Pouch Sales Grew 40% in the U.S.

Online retailers, Nicokick and Northerner, published their Nicotine Pouch and Oral Nicotine Report 2025, based on a large-scale customer survey complemented with purchasing data¹. According to the report, the U.S. online nicotine pouch market grew 40% year-on-year in 2024, driven by strong demand and new customer adoption.

Among adult pouch users surveyed, 42% started to use nicotine pouches to quit smoking and 32% to quit dips or vapes. Notably, 92% reported improved well-being after moving away from cigarettes to nicotine pouches. Perceived risk strongly influences consumer choices around nicotine products. Surveyed users rated cigarettes as most harmful (9.1/10), followed by chewing tobacco (8.0), e-cigarettes and heat-not-burn products (7.6), nicotine pouches (3.7) and nicotine-free pouches (2.7).

88% of adult online nicotine pouch buyers are men in the U.S. – versus 70% of all nicotine users being men, which implies a lower online purchasing intensity among women. The average user consumes about four cans per week; however, pouch usage patterns varies significantly across age groups, with highest use among those aged 45–54. Notably, 41% are classified as high-frequency consumers, defined as individuals who use five or more cans per week.

Most adult nicotine pouch users started at age 44, with 96% beginning at 18 or older and only 4% starting before age 18. Survey results show online sales are often viewed as risky for youth access, although 56% of underage users reported getting pouches from local stores compared to 4% online. Online retailers enforce age checks more consistently (98% vs. 75% in-store).

Flavor is a key driver for switching, with 71% of users citing it as a top factor and mint accounting for 58% of sales. Despite a product shortage, ZYN leads in units sold, followed by On! and Rogue. These three brands made up 78% of all cans sold on Nicokick and Northerner. Two-thirds of the users regularly switch between products, reflecting low brand loyalty in a fast-evolving market [note: this finding could be skewed by the ZYN supply shortage which forced ZYN users to look for other alternatives].

May 2025: Spitless Tobacco Sales Soared by +49% in the U.S.

Spitless tobacco, driven by nicotine pouches, grew +48.9% in dollar sales and +33.6% in unit sales in the convenience channel over the 52-week period ending April 20, 2025. 6 mg products (such as, ZYN Wintergreen 6mg, ZYN Spearmint 6mg or ZYN Peppermint 6mg) continue to dominate the category. Nevertheless, in addition to the usual 3mg/4 mg and 6 mg/8 mg line-ups, challenger brands (i.e. brands other than ZYN) are increasingly offering higher nicotine products (9mg, 12mg, 15 mg) as a a point of differentiation – targeting the (experienced) users seeking higher nicotine strength. Morever, nicotine pouches are witnessing a high level of promotion as manufacturers rush to gain market share in a high-growth category.

Meanwhile the traditional smokeless products continue to be under pressure. In the same period, snuff sales declined 5.6% in retail turnover ($) and 9.3% in unit volume (cans), respectively. Similarly, chewing tobacco sales declined 6.9% in retail turnover ($) and 7.5% in unit volume (cans), respectively. However, overall, the smokeless category is in good shape with 12.3% turnover and 8% volume growth – thanks to the booming nicotine pouch sales.

May 2025: Fake ZYNs are in Circulation in the U.S.

Fake ZYN products are in circulation in the U.S. market. ZYN-owner, Philip Morris International is aware of the issue and identified that the fake products are produced overseas. Fake ZYNs contain synthetic nicotine (6-methyl nicotine). Genuine ZYN contains tobacco-derived nicotine. The labelling on fake ZYN cans is not well-aligned or in proper font (i.e. bolder fonts). Fake ZYNs taste off; moreover, the pouch size and pouch color (i.e less bright, more yellowish) are different than the genuine product.

Based on the use of synthetic nicotine, we believe the fake ZYNs are likely to be produced in China; most Chinese nicotine pouch manufacturers use synthetic nicotine, instead of tobacco-derived nicotine, due to the tobacco product licensing restrictions imposed by the Chinese tobacco monopoly.

May 2025: Nicotine Pouch Sales Spiked up 59% in U.S. C-stores in 2024

Nicotine pouch sales spiked up 59% in c-stores in the U.S. in 2024. New modern oral products accounted for 7% of total tobacco sales in all types of retailers in 2024. In the first quarter of 2025, nicotine pouch sales increased by 45% year-on-year basis to reach $1.375 billion despite 3% decline in total tobacco (nicotine sales) in c-stores and multi-outlets (i.e. mass merchants, grocery stores, and others). Nicotine pouch sales in traditional retail (excluding online and speciality stores) is set comfortably to surpass the $5 billlion threshold in 2025. Overwhelmingly, retailers are bullish on the nicotine pouch category and allocate more shelf space for the products at the expense of cigarettes, except for the deep-discount options like Montego.

January 2025: Mint is the Most Common Nicotine Pouch Flavor in the United States

Haypp Group’s US affiliates, Nicokick and Northerner, published their 3rd Nicotine Pouch & Oral Nicotine Report². According to the report, 59% of the nicotine pouch volume (almost 6 out of 10 cans) is in mint flavor – which comes in different varieties such as Mint, Spearmint, Peppermint and Wintergreen. Unflavored and Citrus flavor follow Mint with 8% share in sales.

Philip Morris International (PMI)’s ZYN dominates the top-10 best selling products list with 7 variants. The remaining 3 spots are shared by Swisher’s Rouge (1) and Altria’s on! (2). 9 of the top-10 products are flavored with some form of mint. Only ZYN Citrus 6mg finds itself a place in the list dominated by the mint products.

The Report discloses ZYN, On! and Rogue as the Top-3 brands, collectively accounting for 85% of the cans sold on their platform in 2024. Distant category leader, ZYN’s annual sales volume growth (+28%) remains modest compared to the other brands in the Top-5.

Although it is difficult to be conclusive in the absence of complete data, it seems like ZYN’s restriction of supply to the online retailers (- as a result of the supply shortage and the subpoena received from the AG of the District of Columbia) disproportionately fueled the online sales volume growth of challenger brands. Although these brands also benefited from the ZYN supply constraints faced in the traditional retail, the volume spillover is probably less pronounced (i.e. substantially lower growth rates for challenger brands in traditional retail) due to the PMI’s retail-first strategy (i.e. prioritization of shipments to the traditional retailers).

For further details on ZYN supply constraints: ZYN Shortage

For further details on ZYN subpoena and subsequent suspension of online sales: ZYN Lawsuits

References:

1. https://nicokick.com/us/nicotine-pouch-report-2025 ↩︎
2. https://nicokick.com/us/nicotine-pouch-report-2024 ↩︎