Smoking and Household Purchasing Power: How Much Does It Affect Spending on Essentials?

Jakarta — Cigarette spending is one of the regular outgoings households need to consider when planning budgets for everyday needs. Alongside spending on food, housing, education and healthcare, smoking habits also affect how people allocate their income.

Data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), drawn from the March 2025 National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas), show average per-capita cigarette expenditure of Rp91,708 a month. This is equivalent to 5.84 per cent of total monthly per-capita expenditure.

The figure shows that cigarettes form part of people’s consumption patterns. However, their impact on purchasing power needs to be assessed in light of each household’s economic circumstances, particularly its ability to meet essential needs amid other regular expenses.

Cigarette spending and household budgets

When managing their finances, people have to divide their income among a range of needs. Spending on food and drink, housing, transport, education and healthcare all forms part of a budget that must be adjusted to each family’s financial means.

For households with smokers, buying cigarettes can be a regular expense. If purchases are made every day, the spending accumulates into a weekly and then monthly outlay.

As an illustration, average cigarette spending of Rp91,708 per person per month indicates that the habit has an economic cost that can be included in a consumption budget. However, this is a national average, not the precise amount spent by every individual or family.

Actual spending can vary according to household size, consumption habits, product prices and income levels. The data should therefore be understood as an indication of consumption patterns, rather than a direct measure of the financial circumstances of the entire population.

The burden varies by income level

The effect of cigarette spending on purchasing power is not the same for every section of society. High- and low-income households differ in their ability to absorb regular expenses.

For families on tight budgets, each spending item can affect their ability to meet other needs. Recurring expenditure may leave less room in the budget for additional essentials, particularly if income does not rise in line with the cost of living.