Snus is moist tobacco that goes under the upper lip instead of being smoked. That is the original definition and it is still correct. The complication is that in Switzerland the word is now used for two products that share a shape and very little else.
What snus is
A portion of moist, ground tobacco, usually packed into a small pouch. It sits between the upper lip and the gum, and the nicotine passes through the lining of the mouth.
Nothing is burned, nothing is inhaled, and nothing is spat out. That last point separates snus from American chewing tobacco, which is a different product with different habits attached to it.
A portion stays in for roughly half an hour, then it is taken out and thrown away.
Where snus comes from
Sweden, where it has been in use since the 18th century. It grew out of dry snuff, which was inhaled through the nose, and the Swedish version moved the same tobacco into the mouth instead.
The country of origin still shapes the category. A large share of brand names, product terms and format conventions are Scandinavian, which is why a Swiss shelf is full of Swedish words.
The original form was loose tobacco shaped by hand. Pre packed portions came much later and have taken over almost completely.
How snus is used
The portion goes between your upper lip and gum, on either side, and stays there. You do not chew it and you do not move it around. Chewing damages the pouch and releases everything at once.
The effect builds over the first minutes rather than arriving instantly, because the nicotine has to cross the lining of the mouth. Most of it is gone well before the thirty minute mark, and once the flavour has faded there is no reason to keep the portion in.
Loose snus and portion snus
Two basic forms, and several variations inside the second one.
Loose snus is unpackaged moist tobacco. You take a pinch and shape it into a portion yourself, which takes practice and is now a minority habit.
Portion snus comes ready packed in small pouches, similar in principle to a tea bag. It is cleaner to handle and has pushed loose snus to the margins.
| Format | What it is | Notable for |
|---|---|---|
| Loose | Unpackaged moist tobacco, shaped by hand | Traditional, needs practice |
| Original portion | Moistened pouch, darker in colour | Fast release, more staining |
| White portion | Drier pouch surface | Slower release, lasts longer |
| Slim | Narrower and longer pouch | Sits less visibly under the lip |
| All white | No tobacco leaf, plant fibre filling | No staining, flavour only from flavouring |
Snus in short
- Origin
- Sweden, in use since the 18th century.
- Where it sits
- Between the upper lip and the gum.
- Time in place
- Around 30 minutes.
- Spitting
- Not part of it, unlike chewing tobacco.
- Contains tobacco
- Yes, unless the tin says all white or tobacco free.
Snus, all white and nicotine pouches
This is where the word stops being precise, and the difference is worth getting right before you buy.
Snus in the strict sense contains ground tobacco. Brown pouches, tobacco taste underneath the flavouring, noticeable staining.
All white or nicotine pouches contain no tobacco leaf at all. The filling is plant fibre and the nicotine is added separately. White pouches, little staining, and the taste comes entirely from the flavouring.
In everyday speech both get called snus. On the shelf they are two different products. We go through the practical differences on our page about snus without tobacco.
What the strength number means
Most tins print a figure in milligrams of nicotine. What it refers to varies, and that is the trap.
Traditional snus is often rated per gram of tobacco, which produces a large number. Nicotine pouches are increasingly rated per pouch, which is the more useful figure because it tells you what is actually going under your lip. The two scales are not comparable, so do not match numbers across categories.
Moisture, pouch size and release speed shift the experience further. A very dry pouch with a high figure can feel weaker than a moist one with a lower figure. There is more on that on our page about nicotine pouches.
Why snus is on Swiss shelves
Switzerland is one of the places in Europe where tobacco snus is actually available, which is not the case in most EU countries. That is the practical reason the word covers so much ground here: buyers genuinely encounter both tobacco snus and tobacco free pouches in the same aisle.
It also means reading the tin matters more here than elsewhere. Snus on the front does not tell you whether there is tobacco inside.
Nicotine is nicotine
With or without the tobacco leaf, both categories contain nicotine, and nicotine is highly addictive. Both are intended solely for adults aged 18 and over who already use nicotine.
What ALP makes
ALP makes tobacco free nicotine pouches only, in mint and fruit flavours and in 6mg, 12mg and 18mg, with 20 pouches per tin. The full line-up is in our nicotine pouch overview, the fruit side sits in the Fruit Line, and several flavours at once come in the bundles.