Introduction: The purpose of this article is to summarize the current understanding of tobacco use in France based on representative population surveys.Current state of knowledge: Smoking is widespread in France, with more than a quarter of people aged 15–75 reporting that they smoke daily in 2016 (28.7%). This rate is high as early as age 15 (14.6%), and half of adolescents in this age group have already smoked a cigarette (51.8%). Since the 1970s, differences in smoking behavior by gender have been narrowing. More recently, smoking prevalence has tended to decrease among the most affluent populations but to increase among those with lower socioeconomic status. These increasingly pronounced social inequalities are observed as early as the onset of smoking, often before age 18. Daily e-cigarette users account for 2.5% of those aged 15–75 and are either current tobacco smokers (58.8%) or former smokers (41.2%). Outlook: Addressing social health inequalities is a central challenge in the fight against smoking.Conclusions: It is essential to intensify efforts to reduce the proportion of smokers in France. The 2017 Baromètre Santé and Escapad surveys will help assess whether the policies implemented in 2016 have had an impact on the perception of smoking and on smoking prevalence rates. [R.A.]