What kind of air filter removes cigarette smoke?

MERV 13 air filters are the most effective residential option, capturing fine particulate matter down to 0.3 microns including most smoke particles. For smoke odor, an activated carbon odor eliminator filter absorbs the volatile compounds that standard filters miss.

U.S. Cities With the Highest Smoking Rates (2024 CDC Data)

Which U.S. cities have the highest percentage of adults who smoke? While national smoking rates have dropped significantly over the past two decades, some cities still have smoking prevalence well above the national average—and the health consequences for residents are serious.
Researchers at Filterbuy analyzed CDC data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to rank the U.S. cities where smoking remains most prevalent among adults. Beyond the rankings themselves, this analysis explores the link between high smoking rates and the indoor air quality challenges facing homes in these communities—including elevated exposure to secondhand smoke, particulate matter, and respiratory-aggravating pollutants that get trapped inside HVAC systems.
Here are the large, midsize, and small U.S. cities with the highest adult smoking rates, along with what these numbers mean for your home’s air.

TL;DR: Quick Answers

City with the highest smoking rate: Detroit, MI — 28.9% of adults smoke, the highest among large U.S. cities (350,000+ population), followed by Cleveland, OH at 27.8%.

States with the most smokers: West Virginia (23.8%), Kentucky (23.6%), and Louisiana (21.9%) lead the nation; California (10.0%) and Utah (7.9%) have the lowest rates.

Region with the most smokers: Southeastern states have the highest concentration overall, but at the city level, Midwestern cities in Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana dominate the rankings.

How smoking affects your home's air: Cigarette smoke introduces 7,000+ chemicals into indoor air that recirculate through HVAC systems — a MERV 13 air filter captures smoke particles as small as 0.3 microns.

National trend: U.S. smoking rates dropped roughly 30% between 1995 and 2019, from about 1 in 4 adults to 16%.

Top Takeaways

Detroit leads the nation — 28.9% adult smoking rate, nearly double the national average (16%). Cleveland (27.8%) and Memphis (24.3%) round out the top three.

The Midwest dominates city-level rankings — Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana cities top the list across all population sizes, even though Southeastern states lead at the state level.

Smoking is declining but still widespread — Rates dropped ~30% from 1995–2019, yet 40% of U.S. adults are current or former smokers.

State policies matter — Strict tobacco laws work. California (10.0%) and Utah (7.9%) have less than half the smoking rates of West Virginia (23.8%) and Kentucky (23.6%).

Smoking damages your home's air, not just your health — Secondhand smoke carries 7,000+ chemicals through your HVAC system. Thirdhand smoke residue lingers on surfaces for weeks. In apartments, smoke migrates between units through shared ductwork.

Your best defense: a MERV 13 air filter — Captures smoke particles down to 0.3 microns. Add an activated carbon odor eliminator filter for lingering smoke smells.

Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of Line graph showing a steady decline in adult smoking rates in the U.S. from the 1990s through 2018.

The push to reduce smoking has produced positive nationwide results. However, smoking’s prevalence in the mid- to late-20th century still affects a significant portion of the population. While only 16% of adults currently smoke some days or every day, about 40% of adults identify as current or former smokers.

Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of Bar chart illustrating that about 40% of adults in the U.S. are either current or former smokers, with the majority never having smoked.

A regional analysis of the country reveals that the Southeast has the highest concentration of smokers, while the West has the lowest concentration. For example, California and Utah have the lowest percentage of adults who smoke at 10.0% and 7.9%, respectively, while West Virginia, Kentucky, and Louisiana have the highest percentage of smokers at 23.8%, 23.6% and 21.9%.

A variety of factors contribute to these regional and state-by-state disparities. California bans smoking from a wide variety of indoor and outdoor spaces. Utah’s dominant religion, Mormonism, encourages its members to abstain from tobacco.

West Virginia, the state with the highest percentage of smokers, has relatively lax smoking laws. Likewise, Kentucky is the country’s premier producer of burley tobacco, a key component of cigarette tobacco blends. Louisiana is a niche producer of tobacco but has long struggled with high smoking rates. In fact, nearly 30% of Louisiana high school students use tobacco, the CDC reported in March 2021.

Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of U.S. map showing smoking prevalence by state, with West Virginia, Kentucky, and Louisiana having the highest smoking rates.

As the states with the most residents who smoke grapple with solutions, smokers are paying a heavy price. The correlation between smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and smoking and strokes is incredibly high. Coronary heart disease and other poor health indicators are also linked to smoking, according to the CDC.

Many of the cities with the highest smoking rates also appear among the cities with the most asthma cases, suggesting a compounding effect of tobacco use on respiratory health. Similarly, several of these same metro areas rank among the U.S. cities with the worst air quality, where outdoor pollution combines with indoor smoking to create elevated health risks.

How Smoking Affects Indoor Air Quality in Your Home

Cigarette smoke doesn’t just affect the person lighting up. According to the EPA, secondhand smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, hundreds of which are toxic. When someone smokes inside a home—or even near open windows and doors—those fine particles infiltrate the HVAC system and recirculate through every room.
In cities with high smoking rates, the impact extends beyond individual households. Apartment complexes, condominiums, and multi-family homes face shared-air challenges where smoke from one unit can migrate into neighboring units through HVAC ductwork, wall gaps, and ventilation systems.
The residue left behind by tobacco smoke—often called “thirdhand smoke”—clings to surfaces, carpets, and HVAC components. Even after a smoker leaves, these contaminants can be re-released into the air for weeks or months.
For homeowners in high-smoking cities, using a higher-rated air filter is one of the most effective steps to reduce indoor smoke exposure. MERV 13 air filters are designed to capture fine particles—including smoke particulates as small as 0.3 microns—that lower-rated filters miss entirely. Paired with regular filter changes, a MERV 13 filter helps prevent smoke-related contaminants from accumulating in your system and recirculating through your home.

Homeowners concerned about smoke infiltration can take the same approach recommended for keeping wildfire smoke out of your home — sealing gaps, running the HVAC fan continuously, and upgrading to a MERV 13 air filter designed to capture fine particulate matter. For lingering smoke odors, an activated carbon odor eliminator filter can absorb the volatile compounds that standard filters miss.

While states in the Southeast have the highest percentage of residents who smoke, at the city level, it’s locations in the Midwest that stand out. Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana are home to many of the small, midsize, and large cities with the highest smoking rates among adults.

To calculate the cities and states with the most smokers, researchers at Filterbuy analyzed data on American adults from the CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). To qualify as a smoker, subjects must have smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and currently smoke all or some days. Only cities with at least 100,000 residents were included in the research, and cities were grouped according to population size: small (100,000–149,999), midsize (150,000–349,999), and large (350,000 or more).

Here are the U.S. cities with the highest smoking rates.

Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of List of U.S. small and midsize cities with the highest percentage of adult smokers, highlighting Dayton, OH and Akron, OH as top cities.

Large Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke

Cities With the Most Residents Who Smoke -Infographics of List of Florida cities like Tampa show regional differences in smoking behavior.

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