Nic salt vs freebase vs nicotine pouches: three ways to get nicotine

Freebase nicotine is the form used in e-liquids since the start. It gives a noticeable throat hit, which feels harsh at high strengths, so it is usually vaped at lower strengths in bigger devices.

Nic salts are nicotine combined with a mild acid. The result is smoother on the throat at higher strengths, which is why nic salt e-liquids are the default for small pod kits and big-puff kits.

Nicotine pouches are small white pouches containing nicotine, plant fibres and flavourings, with no tobacco leaf. You tuck one between your gum and upper lip. No device, no vapour. Our nicotine pouches are sold to adults only, like everything else we sell.

E-liquid strength is measured in milligrams of nicotine per millilitre. The UK legal maximum is 20mg/ml, and nicotine-containing bottles are capped at 10ml.

Nic salts usually come in 5mg, 10mg and 20mg, as with Large Juice Kiwimelon. Freebase 10ml liquids typically run 3mg, 6mg, 12mg and 18mg, as with Vampire Vape Heisenberg.

There is also a halfway house: hybrid salts, such as the Riot Squad hybrid range, which blend both forms for a throat hit somewhere in between. If you are new and unsure, start close to what you use now and adjust from there.

The rule of thumb is simple: the more power and vapour, the lower the strength. A sub-ohm tank at 70W produces a lot of vapour per puff, so 3mg freebase is plenty. A small pod kit at 12W produces far less, so it needs a higher strength to deliver a similar amount of nicotine, and nic salt keeps that comfortable.

Getting this wrong is the most common reason new vapers cough, feel lightheaded or feel unsatisfied. High strength in a big device is too much; low strength in a small device can feel like nothing at all.

Pouches sit outside this entirely. Strength is printed per pouch, so a 6mg pouch is not comparable to 6mg/ml liquid.

Pouch brands label strength in milligrams per pouch, and the ranges vary a lot. Zyn starts as low as 1.5mg and runs to 11mg. Snu offers 9, 12 and 18mg. Elf pouches come in 6, 12 and 20mg, and Clew in 5, 10, 15 and 20mg.

Pouches are also sized differently: mini, slim and regular. A mini pouch sits more discreetly; a regular pouch is larger.

As with e-liquid, there is no reason to go stronger than you need. Nicotine is addictive, and a strong pouch can be a lot for someone used to a light vape.

Nicotine attracts more half-truths than any other part of vaping. Here are four that come up again and again.

The big one is that nic salts are somehow a different or stronger drug. They are not: 20mg/ml is 20mg/ml whichever form it is in. What changes is how smooth it feels, which makes higher strengths easier to vape.

The other is that pouches and vapes are interchangeable by the number on the label. Because pouch strength is per pouch and liquid strength is per millilitre, the numbers do not line up.

One quick question to check the idea that matters most: matching strength to device.

If you remember nothing else from this guide, remember that power and strength move in opposite directions. Big clouds want low strength; small, discreet pods want higher strength, and nic salt makes that comfortable. Pouches sidestep the whole question because there is no device involved.

Get this right and your first bottle is far more likely to feel right, too. Get it wrong and you will either be coughing or wondering why nothing is happening.

It is a small thing.