Big change is coming to the price of vaping. From 1 October 2026, a new Vaping Products Duty adds tax to every e-liquid sold in the UK. So your usual bottle will cost more. The good news? With a few smart choices, you can keep your costs down. This guide explains the duty in plain English, then shows you the cheapest ways to carry on vaping.
What is the vape duty?
The Vaping Products Duty is a new excise tax, much like the duty on alcohol and tobacco. It adds £2.20 to every 10ml of e-liquid. With VAT on top, that works out at roughly £2.64 per 10ml. Crucially, the rate is flat. So a 0mg shortfill pays exactly the same as a 20mg nic salt, since the tax tracks volume rather than strength. You can read the detail on the GOV.UK Vaping Products Duty guidance.
One point is worth stressing. The duty applies only to liquid. Your device, coils, pods, tanks and batteries are not taxed, and they keep their usual VAT. From October, every bottle and pod will also carry a duty stamp to show the tax has been paid.
Why is this happening?
The reason is fairly simple. The Government wants vaping taxed more like other nicotine products. It also wants funds to chase down illegal sellers. Either way, Parliament has now fixed the date in law. So the smart move is to plan around it, not worry about it. And planning is easier than you might expect.
Why the format suddenly matters
Because the duty taxes volume, your choice of format now changes your bill a lot. Here is the picture at a glance.
- A 10ml nic salt roughly doubles in price once the duty lands.
- A 50ml shortfill picks up about £11 in duty, and a 100ml setup with two nic shots adds around £26 or more.
- A prefilled pod rises by only about 7%, since each pod holds just 2ml.
- Nicotine pouches sit outside the duty entirely, so their price does not change.
Let us make that real with a quick example. Say you vape a 100ml shortfill each week, topped with two nic shots. After October, the duty alone adds roughly £26 to that bottle, plus a little more on the shots. Now picture a daily pod habit instead. Each 2ml pod carries about 44p of duty, so a week of pods rises by only a pound or two. Same nicotine, very different bill. That gap is exactly what the tips below help you close.
In short, small formats and pods take the lightest hit. Big bottles take the heaviest. That single fact shapes every tip below.
The cheapest ways to keep vaping after October
Lean into prefilled and big-puff pods
Prefilled pods become some of the best value around. A 2ml pod carries just 44p of duty, so the rise per pod is small. A genuine big-puff pod kit, like the Pyne Pod Click 50K range, stretches that even further across thousands of puffs. So pods make a smart home base for cost-conscious vapers.
Try nicotine pouches
Pouches are the quiet winner here. They deliver nicotine with no liquid, so the duty simply does not touch them. They are discreet and easy to use as well. If you fancy a change, our nicotine pouches are worth a look. Do note one rule, though. From 29 October 2026, you must be 18 to buy them.
Make refillable nic salts work harder
Prefer bottles? Nic salts in a refillable pod still go a long way. One 10ml bottle refills your pod several times, so your cost per vape stays reasonable. Browse our nic salt collection to find efficient, flavour-packed options.
Rethink your shortfills
Shortfills take the biggest hit, so weigh them up carefully. They still make sense for cloud chasers and sub-ohm vapers who want big flavour. For everyday mouth-to-lung vaping, though, pods or nic salts now often win on cost.
What the duty does not change
A few things stay exactly the same, which is worth holding in mind. Your hardware stays untouched, so devices, coils and pods keep their normal price. Vaping also stays far cheaper than smoking, even after the duty lands. And the products you already trust do not change at all. So yes, the duty raises the price of liquid. But it does not change what good value actually looks like.
Should you buy ahead of October?
You may wonder whether to buy early. Stock made before 1 October can be sold without the duty for a short window, so prices will not jump overnight. If you do buy ahead, keep it sensible and store your bottles well. E-liquid lasts around two years when kept cool and dark. So buy what you will realistically use, rather than a cupboard full you cannot get through.
Shop smart, genuine and compliant
The duty is a real cost, but it need not derail your vaping. So choose your format with the new maths in mind, and lean on pods and pouches where they save you money. Every product at My Vapery is genuine, tested and fully compliant, which means you spend wisely and safely. Ready to plan ahead? Explore our prefilled pod kits, nic salt collection and nicotine pouches today.
