Everyone who smokes knows it’s a deadly habit they should quit, though that’s not a fact that makes it any easier. It may help, though, to focus on the financial benefits of putting down cigarettes once and for all.
First, let’s look at the actual cost of this habit. The average price of a pack of cigarettes in the United States right now is $5.51. However, in some areas it can easily be twice that. In any case, that means a pack a day smoker needs to budget out $2,011.15 a year for their cigarettes. That’s close to $170 a month, literally, up in smoke. Imagine what else you could be doing with that money. For many, that’s a car payment, a student loan payment, gas for the entire month, a utility bill, etc.
That’s just for current costs too. As every smoker knows, cigarettes continue to increase in price over time. Much of this is directly related to the taxes states put on them, often as a way to help dissuade people from lighting up.
Of course, it may also help to think about how your habit affects everyone else, in terms of dollars and cents. Every year, the United States spends $116,397,094,262 on the cost of smokers. The workplace loses $67,489,993,472 worth of productivity too. Obviously, smoking can eventually lead to death, which costs the country another $117,138,774,968. Put another way, even if you’re only spending $5.51 a day on cigarettes, that’s costing the taxpayer $18.05 for every single pack. Stop smoking and you’ll be doing everyone a favor.
This doesn’t even begin to touch on the money you’ll need to spend on extra insurance costs and eventual medical bills when cigarettes take their toll.
If you’re looking for ways to help out your budget, quitting smoking may be one of the best methods. In the end, it could be one of the best ways you help yourself and others too.
Sources:
http://www.nosmokingday.org.uk/financial-benefits
http://www.icanquit.com.au/health/reasons-to-quit/money-saved
http://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/tobacco-control-advocacy/reports-resources/cessation-economic-benefits/states/united-states.html
