Davidoff cigarettes in Switzerland: varieties, strength and origin
Brand guide · Cigarettes in Switzerland
Davidoff cigarettes carry a name many people know from three different worlds: cigars, cigarettes and perfume. The fragrances, such as Cool Water, have nothing to do with tobacco. And the cigarettes and cigars come from two separate companies, even though both bear the same name. Here you'll read who owns the cigarette brand, which three varieties are sold in Swiss shops, which values are printed on the packs and what "premium" can actually mean for a cigarette. At the end, we'll show you a cigarette whose tobacco really does come from Switzerland.
In short
- Manufacturer: The Davidoff cigarette brand belongs to Imperial Brands. Davidoff cigars, cigarillos and pipe tobacco come from Oettinger Davidoff in Basel.
- Varieties in Switzerland: Davidoff Gold, Davidoff Classic and Davidoff Gold Slims. On top of that there are Davidoff Mini Cigarillos Gold, which are not a cigarette product.
- Strength: The law allows a maximum of 10 mg tar, 1 mg nicotine and 10 mg carbon monoxide per cigarette. Davidoff Classic hits exactly that limit for tar and carbon monoxide, Gold stays below it.
- Alternative: With Heimat, Switzerland isn't just part of the name. The tobacco grows in eight cantons, matures in Payerne and contains no additives. It can be traced right back to the field.
Davidoff cigarettes: the brand's origin and manufacturer
Zino Davidoff was born in 1906 in the Russian Empire. In 1911 his family settled in Geneva, where his father opened a tobacco shop. In 1970 Zino Davidoff sold the business to Oettinger, a family firm from Basel. He died in Geneva in 1994.
Oettinger Davidoff is a Basel family company founded in 1875. It runs Davidoff for every tobacco product except cigarettes: cigars, cigarillos and pipe tobacco. The Davidoff cigarette brand, on the other hand, belongs worldwide to Imperial Brands, a British group. Imperial had been the licensee since taking over Reemtsma in 2002, and in 2006 it bought the global cigarette brand from Tchibo for around 540 million euros. At the time, Imperial called Davidoff its key international premium cigarette brand, sold in more than 70 countries.
Is Davidoff a German brand? Not quite, and it isn't purely Swiss either. The name has its roots in Geneva, and the cigar house is based in Basel. The cigarettes belong to a British group and are distributed in Germany through Reemtsma.
So the pack carries a name with Swiss history, but the cigarette comes from an international group. Where the tobacco inside comes from is something you as a buyer have no way of tracing.
Which Davidoff cigarettes are available in Switzerland?
Here in Switzerland, the range is smaller than abroad. In the kkiosk tobacco shop (as of November 2026) you'll find three cigarette varieties and one cigarillo.
Davidoff Gold: American Blend with a full aroma
kkiosk describes Davidoff Gold as a selection of American Blend tobaccos with a fine taste and a full aroma. So what are "gold cigarettes"? "Gold" is a colour name within the range. It stands for the variety with lower declared values than Classic. Manufacturers used to use words like "light" or "mild" for this. Those terms no longer appear as descriptions on packs, which is why brands work with colours instead. The colour says nothing about the effect on your health.
Davidoff Classic: American and Virginia Blend
Davidoff Classic is the fuller variety in the range. According to kkiosk, it combines American Blend and Virginia Blend for a classic, full aroma.
Davidoff Gold Slims: the slender format
According to kkiosk, Davidoff Gold Slims contain American Blend in a slim, elegant format. "Slims" means the cigarette is thinner, and usually longer too, than a standard cigarette. The name describes the shape and says nothing about the effect.
Davidoff Silver, Blue and Magnum: what you won't find in Switzerland
Davidoff Silver, Blue, Magnum, White, Rose and Evolve don't show up in the Swiss range we checked. They are varieties from other countries or from earlier years. You'll find an alternative made with Swiss tobacco further down.
Davidoff cigarette strength: nicotine, tar and CO
With a premium brand, many people expect a particularly strong or particularly smooth cigarette. But strength is measured the same way for every brand, through tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide. Switzerland sets an upper limit per cigarette for these three values, no matter how classy the pack looks:
The figures come from a smoking machine in a lab that puffs according to a fixed pattern. But you don't smoke to that pattern: if you inhale more deeply or more often, you take in more than stated. That's why the lower value on a Gold pack doesn't tell you how much nicotine actually reaches you.
According to information from Swiss retailers (as of November 2026), Davidoff Gold declares 7 mg tar, 0.6 mg nicotine and 7 mg carbon monoxide. Davidoff Classic declares 10 mg tar, 0.8 mg nicotine and 10 mg carbon monoxide. For Davidoff Gold Slims, retailers list 0.6 mg nicotine. You'll find the tar and carbon monoxide values on the pack.
Are Davidoff strong cigarettes? For tar and carbon monoxide, Davidoff Classic sits exactly at Switzerland's legal maximum. For nicotine, at 0.8 mg, it stays below the 1 mg limit. Which Davidoff is the lightest? Gold and Gold Slims have the lowest declared nicotine value in the Swiss range. That measurement tells you nothing about the risk. How nicotine values differ between varieties is explained in our article on the nicotine content of a cigarette.
Davidoff Gold or Classic: the difference
| Variety | Blend according to retailers | Format | Typical profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davidoff Gold | American Blend | Standard | Fine taste, full aroma according to the manufacturer |
| Davidoff Classic | American and Virginia Blend | Standard | Classic and full |
| Davidoff Gold Slims | American Blend | Slim | Like Gold, in a slim format |
Taste is personal. The table is meant to inform you and is not a ranking.
Davidoff cigarettes, cigars and cigarillos: what's what?
Davidoff cigars, cigarillos and pipe tobacco come from Oettinger Davidoff in Basel. Davidoff cigars are made in the Dominican Republic and in Honduras.
Davidoff Mini Cigarillos Gold often sit right next to the cigarettes. kkiosk sells them in packs of 10 and states 100 % tobacco from the Dominican Republic, Brazil and Indonesia. Even so, they are not cigarettes but cigarillos. The fragrances, such as Cool Water, are a licensed perfume line and have nothing to do with tobacco.
| Product | Brand owner | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Cigarettes | Imperial Brands | Davidoff Gold, Classic, Gold Slims |
| Cigars, cigarillos, pipe tobacco | Oettinger Davidoff, Basel | Davidoff cigars, Davidoff Mini Cigarillos Gold |
| Perfume | Licensed fragrance line | Cool Water |
Buying Davidoff cigarettes in Switzerland: the rules since 2024
Well-known Geneva name or cheap mass-market brand: since 1 October 2024, the Tobacco Products Act treats every cigarette in Switzerland the same. For a Davidoff, that specifically means:
- You can only buy them from the age of 18, and that applies in every canton.
- Even a classy-looking pack carries picture warnings.
- Advertising and sponsorship for the brand are restricted.
- Nicotine pouches and e-cigarettes fall under the same rules.
On Swiss packs, the health warning appears in German, French and Italian. You'll find Davidoff cigarettes at the kiosk, at the petrol station and in retail stores. Ordering online works too, and the shop checks your age when you do. The details are in our article on ordering tobacco on invoice.
Looking for a price or a deal? Prices vary from retailer to retailer and change regularly. That's why this guide doesn't list any prices.
Heimat as a Swiss alternative to Davidoff Gold
With Davidoff, premium mainly means a well-known name from Geneva, a classy pack and a range with clear colours. Where the tobacco comes from is something the pack doesn't tell you. Heimat defines quality through origin. The tobacco grows in fields across eight Swiss cantons, matures in Payerne and goes into the cigarette without any additives. You can trace where it comes from right back to the field.
There's one thing even the most carefully grown tobacco can't do: make a cigarette less harmful. Premium describes origin, processing and taste, not the effect on your body.
From the Swiss field to the pack
Instead of tobacco from all over the world, only Virginia and Burley from Swiss farms, spread across eight cantons. The seed is GMO-free.
Every leaf is picked by hand. After that, the leaves hang in barns until they turn golden or brown.
Maturing in Payerne takes place under controlled heat. This makes the tobacco less harsh and lets it develop its own aromas.
In our own manufacture, the tobacco is processed with Swiss mountain spring water. No humectants or flavourings are added.
How the current harvest was grown and processed is shown on our page Field-fresh Swiss tobacco 2026.
Davidoff carries a Geneva name. Heimat carries tobacco from Swiss fields.
Big-tobacco cigarette, premium ones included
- A blend of tobaccos from different countries of origin
- Flavourings and humectants are often part of the recipe
- The brand name says nothing about where it's grown
- Made in large industrial plants
Heimat made with Swiss tobacco
- Only tobacco from Swiss fields
- No additives, no humectants, no flavourings
- GMO-free and traceable right back to the field
- Processed in our in-house manufacture
From Davidoff to Heimat: which variety suits you?
Heimat Original Hell. Lots of Virginia, a golden colour and a mild taste with a light natural sweetness. If you like the fine profile of Gold, you'll find a similar direction here.
Heimat Original Dunkel. Burley takes the lead here: earthy, nutty, with more depth. A choice for you if you like Classic for its fullness.
Heimat Original Pfefferminze & Königskerze. Swiss tobacco, combined with organic herbs from Switzerland.
Heimat RYO and MYO. For rolling, there's RYO Hell and Dunkel in 30 g plus Hell in 80 g. MYO Hell and Dunkel in 250 g are made for tubes and filling machines.
"Mild" refers to taste only here.
To all Heimat cigarettes To the rolling tobacco To the MYO tobacco
Without smoke
Heimat Nicotine Pouches
A classy cigarette won't help you much when you're not allowed to smoke, say in a meeting, on a long flight or on the train. For hours like these, there are Heimat Nicotine Pouches. They contain no tobacco and produce no smoke. You tuck the pouch under your upper lip, and nobody around you notices a thing.
- Swiss Made, from development to testing
- No tobacco, recipe openly declared
- 15 mg nicotine in every pouch
- Tested three times in the lab
Important: even without tobacco, the pouches deliver nicotine, and nicotine is addictive. 15 mg per pouch is meant for adults who are already used to nicotine.
To the pouchesIngredients of the pouchesOther brands compared
Here's how the best-known international brands line up in Swiss shops:
| Brand | Typical varieties | International manufacturer |
|---|---|---|
| Davidoff | Gold, Classic, Gold Slims | Imperial Brands |
| Marlboro | Red, Gold, Touch | Philip Morris International |
| Camel | Filters (Yellow), Blue, Essential, Crush | Japan Tobacco International |
| Chesterfield | Original, White, Orange, Unplugged | Philip Morris International |
| Lucky Strike | Original Red, Blue, Sky, Amber | British American Tobacco |
We also have dedicated guides on Dunhill, Parisienne, Winston and American Spirit.
Frequently asked questions about Davidoff cigarettes
Who makes Davidoff cigarettes?
The Davidoff cigarette brand belongs to Imperial Brands. The British group has owned it worldwide since 2006 and had already been the licensee since 2002. Davidoff cigars come from Oettinger Davidoff in Basel.
Is Davidoff a Swiss or a German brand?
Neither purely Swiss nor purely German. The name goes back to Zino Davidoff in Geneva, and the cigar house is based in Basel. The cigarettes belong to the British group Imperial Brands and are distributed in Germany through Reemtsma.
Which Davidoff cigarettes are available in Switzerland?
Swiss shops stock Davidoff Gold, Davidoff Classic and Davidoff Gold Slims. Davidoff Mini Cigarillos Gold are often right next to them, but they are cigarillos, not cigarettes.
What is the difference between Davidoff Gold and Davidoff Classic?
According to retailers, Davidoff Gold relies on American Blend, while Davidoff Classic uses a mix of American and Virginia Blend. The declared nicotine is 0.6 mg for Gold and 0.8 mg for Classic, but the pack is what counts.
How strong are Davidoff cigarettes?
Davidoff Classic declares 10 mg tar and 10 mg carbon monoxide, which puts it at the Swiss maximum, while its 0.8 mg nicotine stays below the 1 mg limit. Davidoff Gold sits lower, with 7 mg tar, 0.6 mg nicotine and 7 mg carbon monoxide. These values tell you nothing about the risk.
Can you get Davidoff Silver or Magnum in Switzerland?
Davidoff Silver, Magnum, Blue and similar varieties don't show up in the Swiss range we checked. They are names from other countries or from earlier years.
Is there an alternative to Davidoff made with Swiss tobacco?
Yes. If you smoke Gold, you can try Heimat Original Hell, and if you like Classic, Heimat Original Dunkel. Here, Switzerland isn't just in the name: the tobacco comes from fields in eight cantons, matures in Payerne, is free of additives and can be traced right back to where it was grown. Without smoke, there are Heimat Nicotine Pouches.
Health warning: Smoking kills. Nicotine, whether from tobacco or from nicotine pouches, is highly addictive. All products are intended exclusively for adults aged 18 and over. Davidoff, Marlboro, Camel, Chesterfield, Lucky Strike and the other names mentioned belong to their respective trademark owners. This guide is for information only and is not affiliated with any of these manufacturers. More in our risk information.