Market intelligence · October 20, 2026 · Stefan Bensmo

on! Nicotine Pouches: Shipments Grew as Category Share Fell (2025 Data)

Short answer: Altria reported 177.8 million on! cans shipped in the US in 2025, 10.9% more than in 2024. At the same time, on!’s share of the US nicotine pouch category fell from 18.8% to 15.4%. Both statements can be true: the category expanded faster than the brand.

The five numbers that describe 2025

Growth and share loss are not a contradiction

A brand can sell more and still lose category share when the category grows faster. on! shipment volume increased by 17.5 million cans in 2025. Yet nicotine pouches grew from 43.3% to 53.3% of the broader oral category, while on!’s position inside the pouch segment declined. That is a relative competitive loss inside an expanding market, not a decline in reported shipments.

Three denominators that must not be mixed

Altria reports three different percentages: on!’s share of nicotine pouches, on!’s share of all oral tobacco products, and nicotine pouches’ share of all oral products. They answer different questions. The 15.4% figure describes competition among pouch brands. The 8.2% figure includes moist smokeless tobacco in the denominator. The 53.3% figure describes the category shift from traditional oral products to pouches.

Altria’s retail shares come from Circana’s sample of tracked US channels. The company itself warns that the figures should not be treated as a precise measurement of the entire market. Its shipment number includes promotional cans and counts every can as one unit regardless of the number of pouches inside.

What changed by Q2 2026?

on!’s pouch-category share was 14.4% in the second quarter of 2026, up from 13.4% in the first quarter but below the full-year 2025 level of 15.4%. Its share of the broader oral category was 8.6%. A sequential recovery is visible, but one quarter is not enough to establish a durable reversal.

Our read on! shows why growth dashboards need both absolute and relative measures. Shipments reveal scale and execution. Category share reveals whether the brand is keeping pace with competitors. A management team that follows only one can tell itself the wrong story.

FDA expanded the on! portfolio in August 2026

On 4 August 2026, FDA authorised four additional products made by Helix Innovations: on! Rich Berry 2 mg, Cappuccino 2 mg, Cappuccino 4 mg and Autumn Spice 2 mg. The decision came through FDA’s nicotine pouch pilot programme. A PMTA marketing order applies to the named products; it is not a general approval of the brand or product category.

The regulatory expansion does not change the 2025 figures above, but it shows Altria broadening the on! portfolio while the brand’s share of the pouch category is under pressure. That distinction matters when tracking future volume and product mix.

What it means for operators and investors

• Define the denominator before discussing market share. Pouch share and total oral share are not interchangeable.
• Track units and competitive position together. Volume growth can conceal weakening category position.
• Label company and third-party estimates. Circana projections and manufacturer shipments are different datasets.

See the 2026 ownership map for the groups behind on!, ZYN, VELO, Zone and other brands.