Report: Record Number of Premium Cigar Imports into the U.S. in 2022

There were more premium cigars imported into the U.S. in 2022 than in any other year on record.

According to a new report from the Cigar Association of America, a cigar trade organization, there were 464.543 million premium cigars imported into the U.S. in 2022, a 2.3 increase compared to 2021, itself a record year.

Nicaragua cigars accounted for roughly 54 percent of all premium cigars imported into the U.S. in 2022. In 2022, imports of Nicaraguan cigars exceeded 250 million premium cigars, a 4.1 percent increase compared to 2021. The Dominican Republic, the second largest exporter to the U.S., accounted for 27.7 percent of premium cigar imports.

Had Nicaragua’s exports to the U.S. remained flat in 2022, the overall results would have been only a minor increase for the total imports. Nicaragua exported 9.9 million more cigars in 2022 compared to 2021, more than 93 percent of the total growth.

Interestingly, imports were down in seven of the 12 months of the year; however, in the months of March, June and August, imports beat 2021 numbers by 4-5 million units per month, making up the more modest declines in other months. Additionally, the year closed on a high note, with December 2022 beating out 2021 by roughly 3 million units.

CAA calculates these numbers based on both the import numbers provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Customs Services and information from cigar companies themselves. The trade group’s numbers are not exact because of reporting differences; it estimates how many “large cigars” were actually “premium cigars.” The differences between the two are that there are some machine-made cigars that meet the U.S. definition of a “large cigar,” though those cigars would not be considered premium cigars by most people.