How this calculator works
Smoking costs an employer in two distinct ways. First, smoke breaks are often taken on paid time. Multiply the average break length by the number of breaks and the working days to get paid hours lost in a year, then cost those hours at the hourly wage. That is the time the employer pays for but does not receive as work. Second, the cigarettes have a direct cost to the smoker, which is what the habit costs over a year. The calculator shows both and their combined total so you can see the full picture: the employer cost and the personal cost are separate amounts that should not be added unless you are deliberately measuring one person's total cost. This is an arithmetic estimate, not a medical or actuarial assessment.
Formula
Paid minutes lost per day = break length in minutes x breaks per day. Paid hours lost per year = minutes x working days / 60. Employer cost per year = paid hours lost x hourly wage. Cigarettes per year = cigarettes per day x 365. Packs per year = cigarettes per year / cigarettes per pack. Cigarette cost per year = packs x price per pack. Combined cost = employer cost + cigarette cost.
Worked example
Three 10-minute breaks on each of 240 working days lose 30 minutes a day, or 120 paid hours a year. At $25 an hour that costs the employer $3,000. Smoking 10 cigarettes a day is 3,650 cigarettes a year; at 25 per pack that is 146 packs, which at $15 each cost $2,190. The combined annual figure is $5,190.
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Frequently asked questions
Does every smoke break really cost the employer?
Only the breaks taken on paid time and not made up elsewhere. Many workplaces let smokers take the same short breaks as other staff, or expect the time to be made up. Adjust the break length or the number of breaks to reflect the policy that actually applies.
Should I include health and insurance costs?
No. This calculator covers time lost and the price of cigarettes only. Group health premiums, absenteeism and productivity effects are separate and vary widely, and estimating them from smoking status alone would be speculative.
Why are both costs shown separately?
They fall on different people. The paid-break cost is borne by the employer and the cigarette cost by the smoker. Adding them gives a total that can be useful for a workplace awareness campaign, but it should not be read as one party's cost.