Of all the dumb things someone can do to be buckraked, smoking has to be at the top of the list.  Even a 2 year old can tell you that sucking in hot smoke and ash is stupid.  But let’s focus for a second on the financial consequences for those who smoke.

First of all, how much does the average smoker pay for cigarettes in his or her life?  The average cost of a pack of cigarettes is $5.51 as of 2009.  Using the assumption that the average smoker smokes 1 pack of cigarettes a day, in one year he or she would spend $2,011, the cost in five years is $10,056, and the cost during one’s life is $122,680.

Oh yeah, we should mention the obvious that smokers die earlier by an average of 14 years compared to non-smokers.  So we will need to factor in the “savings” of $28,154 the smoker will enjoy by croaking early.  So you really are only looking at a savings of $94,524.

Although there are plenty of other things that will cost you dearly including selling a stinky car, losing a rental deposit for a stinky apartment, and losing chicks due stinky breath and nasty-ass teeth, we really need to factor in the cost of health insurance.  It costs a smoker $462 more for health insurance per year than a non-smoker.  That means we are going to have to tack on another $21,714.  Ouch, this buck can hurt!

So follow Obama’s good example and drop smoking, and the Buck will guarantee that you will be happier with the extra $116,238.

Tagged as: cigarettes, cost, cost of smoking, money, risks, save, smoking