close up of cigarette burning and smoking

If you’re a tobacco smoker, or if you live with one, then you know all too well that the smell of cigarettes can permeate the inside of your home.

Fortunately, there are now a variety of different ways for how to get rid of tobacco smell so your home smells fresh and clean.

So, if you came here looking for tips on how to get rid of cigarette odor, then this guide can help.

Below, you’ll find the top ways for how to remove smoke and its odor quickly and easily.

How to Get Rid of Tobacco Smell

1. Use an Air Purifier

Adding an air purifier to your home is the easiest and most cost-effective way to remove tobacco smell from your home.

Air purifiers work by pulling in air from the room, then forcing that air through a series of filters.

One type of filter called a HEPA filter will remove the visible smoke and other contaminants, while another type of filter called an Activated Carbon filter will trap the smell.

After going through the filters, fresh, clean air is then pumped back into your room.

The more times the air goes through the filter, the cleaner it gets.

So, it’s in your best interest to keep the air purifier running as often as possible so every trace of tobacco and its odor can be removed.

When it comes to the best air purifiers for smokers, units that contain a large amount of activated carbon and a high-quality True HEPA filter have the best performance for extracting smoke.

If you the most convenient and long-term solution for removing smoke from your home, then check out our best air purifier for cigarette smoke reviews.

That page helps you find the right product for your needs and budget.

See all of Amazon's Best Selling Air Purifiers

2. Place Charcoal in Your Home

The Activated Carbon filter that’s used in an air purifier is actually made up of charcoal.

However, this charcoal has been specially treated with oxygen to make it more porous to a better job at removing tobacco smoke.

You can get a similar effect by using charcoal briquettes, but it’s not as fast or efficient.

Since charcoal is good at removing smoke odors from your home, you might consider setting some briquettes in the room where the smoke is most concentrated.

You can also buy non-toxic charcoal powder online, and then place it in bowls and set it around your home.

Let these bowls sit for a few days to absorb the smell.

If you notice that the smell persists, change out the old charcoal and set the bowls out again.

Should you still notice the smoky smell, you might consider getting an air purifier with Activated Carbon to absorb the smoke smell.

3. Use Baking Soda

If you’re asking how to get rid of tobacco smell, another product that’s used to absorb odors is baking soda.

And baking soda can be used in a couple of different ways.

You can leave open boxes sitting around the room that has the most smoke, much like you did with the bowls of charcoal.

You can also sprinkle the baking soda onto your carpeting and furniture and let it sit overnight. Then, vacuum it up the next day and hope that it takes the smell with it.

You might have to repeat these steps a few times depending on how much smoke is in the room.

If this tip doesn’t seem like this is helping, don’t worry. There are other things you can try below.

4. Use Ammonia and Water to Do a Deep Clean

If you’re wondering how to get rid of cigarette odor, it’s important to realize that it can be absorbed into the walls of your home.

Ammonia has an incredibly strong odor, but it might be just what you need to get rid of the tobacco smell in your home.

You’ll want to mix one cup of ammonia in one gallon of water. Then, wipe down all of the hard surfaces in the rooms, including the walls.

You can also allow the ammonia and water mixture to diffuse throughout your home. For this step, you’ll bring two cups of ammonia and one gallon of water to a boil and then let it drift throughout your home.

As a precaution, always wear safety goggles, gloves, and a respirator when working with any type of chemicals indoors.

5. Repaint the Walls

If you tried a deep cleaning of your home with ammonia and water and you still smell smoke, then you might need to repaint the walls.

Additionally, you could just skip the ammonia and water cleaning process and just go for repainting to reduce the smell of cigarettes and tobacco.

The best way to get rid of the smell is to start with an odor-neutralizing primer, such as KILZ. Give the walls two good coats of this primer and the odor should go away for good.

After that, you can then add a top coat of paint in the color of your choice.

6. Use Vinegar

Vinegar is another way to remove tobacco odors from your home.

It’s can be just as effective as ammonia but doesn’t have as overpowering of an odor.

You can use either white or apple cider vinegar for this endeavor.

You can either boil the vinegar or create a cleaning solution—whichever is easiest for you.

If you decide to boil it, you’ll want to add a few cups of vinegar to one quart of water. Bring it to a boil, then turn it off and let it sit for at least 30 minutes.

To create a cleaning solution, you’ll want to add equal parts of vinegar and water to a spray bottle.

You’ll then spray this solution onto the solid surfaces that have been impacted by the tobacco smoke and wipe them down.

7. Do Something About the Carpets

Once tobacco smell has permeated your carpets, it can be incredibly challenging to get out.

The best course of action is to rip up the old carpet and padding and replace it with new flooring.

If that’s not possible, then call in a professional who can do a deep cleaning of the carpets or go to your local home improvement store to rent a carpet cleaning machine.

Using a professional-grade carpeting cleaning machine and odor-neutralizing cleaners can do a good job of getting rid of the smell of smoke in your home.

Summary of How to Get Rid of Cigarette Odor

Tobacco smoke leaves a distinctive odor that can permeate your furniture, flooring, walls, and drapes.

As you learned, there are a number of ways you can try to get rid of smoke smell, but the easiest is to add an air purifier to your home.

If you’re asking how to get rid of tobacco smell, an air purifier with an Activated Carbon filter and True HEPA filter can ensure that your home smells fresh and has clean air all year long.

You can find the top products that will work for your needs and budget on our best air purifier for cigarette smoke reviews page.

So, give it a look if you want to use the easiest and fastest method for removing smoke smell and tobacco odor from your home.

Avatar for Katherine Dyson

About Katherine Dyson

Katherine is the lead Staff Writer. She conducts in-depth research and interviews with industry experts in order to produce a wide range of content for the site. Her main role is to write helpful articles that aid people who are seeking to improve their indoor air quality and comfort. (See Full Bio)