It is free, it supplies the treatment as well as the support, and it is the single change that moves your odds most. The NHS puts it plainly: "You're up to 3 times more likely to stop smoking for good if you use a combination of stop smoking treatment and receive support from an NHS Stop Smoking Service." Getting in takes one phone call or a word with a pharmacist.
Most people who have quit three times on their own have never used one, usually because they assumed it cost money or came with a lecture.
What you actually get
Four things, and the last one is the one that does the quiet work.
**An adviser.** A specific person who sees you through the first weeks. Sessions are one-to-one or in a group depending on the area, at GP surgeries, pharmacies and other local venues.
**The treatment itself.** Nicotine replacement therapy such as patches or gum, and prescription medicines including varenicline and bupropion, which the NHS names on the same page. NICE's guideline names varenicline, nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and nicotine replacement therapy among the options "more likely to result in people successfully stopping smoking". Cytisine was added to those recommendations in a February 2024 surveillance decision and reached the UK in January 2024, so ask what your service actually stocks.
**A carbon monoxide breath test.** A number that drops fast in the first days, which turns out to be oddly motivating when everything else feels abstract.
**Weekly contact through the first four weeks.** That is the stretch where most quits fall over, and having a specific human expecting you on a specific day is a completely different experience from quitting privately and quietly giving up on it.
Getting in
Three routes, all short.
- **Ask a pharmacist.** Many pharmacies run the service themselves, and this is the fastest door.
- **Ask your GP.** The NHS says "Your GP, pharmacist or health visitor can refer you, or you can phone your local stop smoking service."
- **Phone the service directly.** Search "stop smoking service" with your council's name. Provision is organised locally, and the contact details differ across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Nothing about any of those requires you to have a quit date already, or to have stopped, or to be certain. Turning up undecided is a normal way to arrive.
What the first appointment is like
Not a lecture. The actual order of events is closer to admin than to confession.
- They ask how much you smoke or vape, and what your pattern looks like. Bring a real number if you have one. [How much nicotine you are actually on](/guides/nicotine/how-much-nicotine-are-you-actually-on) takes a week to work out and makes this appointment twice as useful.
- You agree a quit date together, usually within a couple of weeks.
- They size the treatment. This is the bit worth turning up for. Underdosing is the most common reason NRT gets written off as useless, and it is exactly what an adviser prevents. There is more in [patches, gum, vapes: what actually helps](/guides/nicotine/nrt-vapes-and-what-actually-helps-you-quit).
- They arrange the supply, at no cost to you.
- They book the follow-ups.
Nobody asks you to justify yourself, and nobody is keeping score.
What it costs
Nothing. The service is free, and so is the treatment it supplies, including the prescription options. You do not need to buy anything from a shop to start, and the NHS notes that getting nicotine replacement through a service is cheaper than buying it over a counter.
That matters because the shop route is where most people begin and where most people underspend. Buying the cheapest single product, using too little of it, and concluding it does not work is a well-worn path that the free service exists to prevent.
If you vape and never smoked
Ask directly what they have for you, because the answer varies by area.
The whole of the UK's stop smoking infrastructure was built around vaping as the solution to smoking, so someone who never smoked and wants off nicotine entirely is outside the design. An adviser will still see you, and the NRT, the dosing and the weekly contact all transfer. What differs is that some of the standard advice will be aimed at somebody else, and it is worth saying that in the first five minutes rather than sitting through it. The specifics are in [why quitting vaping is different](/guides/nicotine/why-quitting-vaping-is-different).
The free extras worth taking
Alongside the service, the NHS runs a free Quit Smoking app, "designed to provide you with personalised support to help you quit smoking for good", which tracks your progress and what you have saved. There is also a personal quit plan tool that walks through preparing for the date and handling triggers.
And the milestone the whole first month points at: "Once you reach 28 days smoke-free, you're much more likely to quit for good!"
Some people also want the day count, the wobbles and the times that keep catching them out in one private place on their phone. That is what Renovyn is for, alongside the service rather than instead of it.
What it is not
**It is not a moral test.** Advisers see people slip. It is the ordinary case rather than the shameful one, and the appointment after a slip is the most useful one you will have. [You had one, what now](/guides/nicotine/you-had-one-what-now) covers the rest of that hour.
**It is not group therapy unless you want it.** One-to-one exists nearly everywhere.
**It is not a discharge if you fail.** Not smoking on the date is not a condition of being seen the following week.
Common questions
Is the NHS stop smoking service really free?
Yes, including the treatment it supplies. The NHS makes the point that getting nicotine replacement this way is cheaper than buying it from a pharmacy counter, and prescription options are arranged through the service too.
Do I need a GP referral?
No. Your GP, pharmacist or health visitor can refer you, and you can also phone your local service yourself. Many pharmacies run the service on site, which is usually the quickest way in.
What if I am not ready to set a date?
Go anyway. Working out how much you are on, what has failed before and what treatment would suit you is useful work whether or not you have committed, and the date gets agreed with you rather than handed to you.
What do they actually prescribe?
Nicotine replacement therapy such as patches and gum, and medicines including varenicline and bupropion. NICE names varenicline, nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and NRT among the treatments most likely to result in stopping, with cytisine added in 2024. What is stocked varies locally, so ask.
Will they tell me off if I slip?
No, and cancelling the appointment out of embarrassment is the thing most likely to turn one cigarette into a month. Adjusting the dose is often the actual fix.
Sources
- [NHS Stop Smoking Services help you quit](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/quit-smoking/nhs-stop-smoking-services-help-you-quit/). The "up to 3 times more likely" figure, what the service supplies, referral routes, and cost.
- [NHS Better Health, Quit smoking](https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/quit-smoking/). The free NHS Quit Smoking app, the personal quit plan, and the 28 day milestone.
- [NICE NG209 surveillance decision, February 2024](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK602607/). The treatments named as more likely to result in stopping, and cytisine's addition and UK availability.
- [Cochrane: electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation](https://www.cochrane.org/evidence/CD010216_electronic-cigarettes-smoking-cessation). The comparison between nicotine e-cigarettes and nicotine replacement therapy.
