The Main Types of Nicotine Explained

How To Choose The Right Nicotine Type For Your Vape

Stood in a vape shop or scrolling through an e-liquid website, staring at the words “freebase”, “nic salts”, and “bar salts” with absolutely no idea what any of it means?

You’re not alone.

It’s one of the most common questions new vapers ask, and the answer is actually a lot simpler than the jargon makes it sound.

This guide cuts through it and gets you to the right choice in about five minutes.

New to vaping entirely? Get the full picture with my free New Vaper’s Guide — 15+ years of experience in one PDF: Download it here.

The Three Nicotine Types You Need to Know About

There are three types of nicotine used in UK e-liquids. Here’s a plain-English summary of each.

• Freebase nicotine is the original form. It’s been used in e-liquids since vaping began. It delivers a noticeable throat hit and works well at low concentrations (3mg to 6mg). Above that, it gets harsh very quickly. It’s designed for high-powered, sub-ohm vapes that produce large clouds.
• Nicotine salts (nic salts) are freebase nicotine combined with a weak acid, usually benzoic acid. This makes the nicotine smoother and faster-absorbing. You can vape 20mg nic salts without the throat burn that would make 20mg freebase completely unpleasant. Nic salts are designed for pod vapes and low-powered mouth-to-lung (MTL) devices. They’re the most popular nicotine type in the UK right now, and for good reason.
• Bar salts are a type of nic salt with more concentrated flavouring. They were created to replicate the bold, sweet, intensely fruity taste of disposable vapes. If you’ve used a disposable bar before, the flavour experience you remember comes from bar salt-style e-liquid. They work in the same devices as standard nic salts.

That’s it. Three types. The next step is working out which one belongs in your vape.

Step One: What Device Are You Using?

This is the most important question. Your device determines your nicotine type. Not the other way round.

If you have a pod vape or an MTL starter kit

You want nic salts or bar salts. Almost every pod kit on the market is designed for nic salts and bar salts.

They deliver a smooth hit, satisfy nicotine cravings quickly, and work efficiently with the small coils inside pod devices.

Browse pod vapes from Vaporesso or OXVA pod kits if you’re still deciding on a device.

If you have a sub-ohm tank or a high-powered box mod:

You want freebase nicotine in a high VG e-liquid (70/30 or 80/20 VG/PG). These setups run at high wattages and produce dense clouds.

They deliver a lot of nicotine per puff, which is why you keep the concentration low — 3mg to 6mg.

Using nic salts in a sub-ohm setup is a mistake that results in far too much nicotine hitting your system at once. It’s deeply unpleasant.

Not sure what you have? If it’s small, compact, and charges via USB-C, it’s almost certainly a pod vape. Use nic salts. Our guide to the best vape juice for pod vapes walks through exactly what to look for.

Fun Fact: According to ASH 2025 data, nic salts are now the most popular e-liquid type among adult vapers in the UK. The pod vape and nic salt pairing has become the dominant setup in the market — and it’s not particularly close.

Step Two: What Nicotine Strength Do You Need?

Once you know your nicotine type, you need to pick the right strength.

In the UK, the legal maximum is 20mg/ml.

Here’s how to match your strength to your smoking background.

• 20mg — for heavy smokers (15+ cigarettes a day) This is the UK legal maximum and it’s where most people coming off cigarettes should start. It replicates the nicotine hit of a cigarette closely enough to actually satisfy cravings. Starting too low is one of the main reasons people go back to cigarettes within the first week of vaping.
• 10mg — for moderate smokers or those stepping down The sweet spot for the majority of established vapers. It’s where most people end up after a few months on 20mg. Satisfying without being overpowering, and it gives you more control over your overall nicotine intake.
• 5mg — for light smokers or people reducing their intake A growing option, particularly in bar salt formats. Good if you were a light social smoker or if you’re actively working to cut down.
• 3mg — for very light use Rarely seen in nic salt format. At this level, you’re better served by a low-strength freebase liquid, which pairs naturally with the higher-powered setups where 3mg makes sense.
• The rule of thumb: if you smoked, start higher than you think you need. You can always step down. Going too low too soon almost always leads to people supplementing with cigarettes.

Step Three: Nic Salts or Bar Salts?

Both are nic salts in terms of their chemistry. The difference is flavour.

• Choose standard nic salts if: you prefer a clean, balanced flavour profile. Fruit, menthol, tobacco, dessert blends. These are the all-day vapers that sit in the background without demanding your attention. Our fruit nic salt range is a good starting point.
• Choose bar salts if: you’ve come from a disposable vape and the flavour from standard nic salts feels flat or muted by comparison. Bar salts use double-concentrated flavourings to deliver that punchy, sweet, intensely fruity experience you remember from disposable bars. They’re specifically designed to fill the gap left by the UK disposable ban in June 2025.

You can explore the full range of bar salt longfills here or check out our bar salts vs nic salts breakdown if you want a more detailed comparison.

Not sure where to start on flavour? Browse the most popular nic salt flavours in the UK to see what’s most popular right now.

The Simple Decision Table

If you want this in one place:

Your Situation	Nicotine Type	Strength
Pod vape, heavy ex-smoker	Nic salts or bar salts	20mg
Pod vape, moderate ex-smoker	Nic salts or bar salts	10mg to 20mg
Pod vape, light smoker	Nic salts or bar salts	5mg to 10mg
Pod vape, ex-disposable user	Bar salts	10mg or 20mg
Sub-ohm tank, cloud chaser	Freebase (high VG)	3mg to 6mg
Sub-ohm tank, stepping down	Freebase (high VG)	3mg
Not sure what device you have	Nic salts (safe default)	10mg to 20mg

The One Mistake You Absolutely Cannot Make

Using nic salts in a sub-ohm vape, or freebase at high strength in a pod vape.

These sound like minor errors. They’re not.

Nic salts at 20mg in a high-powered sub-ohm device delivers a huge amount of nicotine extremely rapidly.

The result is a throat hit so harsh it puts people off vaping entirely, and a nicotine intake that can cause real discomfort.

High-strength freebase (anything above 6mg) in a pod vape is similarly unpleasant. The absence of the acid modification that makes nic salts smooth means the alkaline nicotine hits hard and rough at concentrations pod-vape users typically need.

Match your e-liquid to your device. Everything else is preference.

Fun Fact: The UK’s Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) cap nicotine-containing e-liquid at 20mg/ml and restrict bottles to 10ml. This is why bar salts and nic salts come in small bottles — and why longfill formats exist as a larger, more cost-effective alternative for everyday vapers.

UK Regulations: A Quick Note

Everything sold by a reputable UK vape retailer already complies with these rules, but it’s useful to know what they mean:

• 20mg/ml maximum. The highest nicotine concentration available in the UK. Any product above this is illegal to sell here.
• 10ml maximum bottle size for any e-liquid containing nicotine. Larger bottles (longfills, QuickMix, shortfills) are sold without nicotine pre-added, so you mix a separate nic shot in yourself.
• 2ml maximum pod or tank capacity. All refillable pods and tanks sold in the UK hold 2ml or less.

From 1 October 2026, the Vaping Products Duty adds £2.20 per 10ml of e-liquid across all formats. If you’re planning ahead, stocking up on longfill formats now gives you significantly better value before the tax kicks in.

Browse the full UK e-liquid range here across all formats and nicotine types.

UK Regulatory Disclaimer: Vaping regulations in the UK are governed by the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) and enforced by the MHRA. The Vaping Products Duty takes effect 1 October 2026 at £2.20 per 10ml (before VAT). Check gov.uk for the latest guidance.

Wrapping Up…

Choosing the right nicotine type comes down to two things: your device and your smoking background.

• Pod vape plus nic salts or bar salts is the correct starting point for the vast majority of new UK vapers.
• Sub-ohm plus freebase is for cloud chasers and experienced vapers who know what they’re doing.

Get the pairing right, pick a strength that matches how much you used to smoke, and you’ve done the hard part. Everything else is just finding flavours you enjoy.

Here’s my current go-to bar salts flavours.

Still not sure which direction to go? The full nic salt range is a good place to browse, and if you want device recommendations to go alongside your juice choice, The Atomized newsletter covers new kit and liquid releases as they land. Follow us on Facebook for daily picks from the team.