According to the OpinionWay 2026 barometer for the DNF association – Demain Sera Non Fumeur, 93% of French people are not opposed to the elimination of tobacco on terraces. A development which is part of a broader movement in favor of public spaces better protected from passive smoking.
Breathing without suffering from smoke: an expectation that becomes part of everyday life
Drink a coffee, share a lunch, meet friends… These moments of conviviality have long been inseparable from cigarettes on the terraces. However, today this image seems to belong less and less to the habits of the French.
One year after the extension of tobacco-free spaces to beaches, parks, public gardens, surroundings of establishments welcoming minors, sports facilities and bus shelters, the view of smoking in public spaces is clearly evolving.
The new OpinionWay barometer produced for DNF reveals that 93% of French people would not be opposed to completely non-smoking terraces. Even more striking, this development does not seem to threaten the activity of cafes and restaurants.
According to the investigation, 31% of French people say they would visit terraces more often if they were tobacco-freewhile 17% say they would be tempted to go more. Conversely, only 7% say they would frequent them less.
In other words, a terrace without cigarettes would potentially attract seven times more customers than it would send away.
Protection against passive smoking becomes a public health priority
This development goes far beyond the simple question of comfort. For several years, public authorities have sought to reduce exposure to passive smoking, the effects of which on health have been widely documented. The decree which entered into force in July 2025 marked a new stage by expanding the spaces where smoking is prohibited. A few weeks later, this ban was also clarified around certain sensitive places within a radius of ten meters.
But for a majority of French people, these measures no longer go far enough. The survey shows that 60% of those surveyed would also like to ban smoking in queueswhile 59% cite the terraces of cafes and restaurants among the spaces that should be more protected.
Another area of concern: neighborhood smoking.
Nearly one in two residents living in buildings (42%) would like to be better protected against smoke coming from neighboring homes, a problem that represents more than
60% of complaints received by the DNF association.
Even the street is no longer immune to this development. In seven years, the proportion of French people wanting more protection against smoke in public spaces has increased from 20% to 37%.
A trend that now extends beyond French borders
France is not isolated in this reflection. By the end of 2024, the Council of the European Union has invited Member States to extend smoke-free spaces to café and restaurant terraces as part of the European Cancer Plan.
Several countries have already taken the plunge. Sweden applies significant restrictions, while Belgium plans to go further from January 2027. Cities like Barcelona or Milan are also experimenting with tobacco-free terraces.
In France, the DNF association works with voluntary establishments as part of the project “My tobacco-free terrace”intended to support professionals wishing to test this model.
For Gérard Audureau, president of DNF, this development reflects an expectation that is now well established: “Terraces today appear to be one of the greatest expectations and this survey demonstrates that they constitute an opportunity, both for public health and for establishments. More broadly, the French express the wish to be able to enjoy all the spaces of daily life without suffering from tobacco smoke..
Towards a new social norm?
For a long time, tobacco-free spaces have sparked passionate debates, often accompanied by fears for the economic activity of the establishments concerned. The results of this barometer today suggest that the lines are moving.
Without announcing an imminent ban on all French terraces, this survey shows that social demand is evolving faster than before. For many French people, breathing smoke-free air is no longer seen as a constraint imposed on smokers, but as a normal condition for enjoying shared living spaces.
It remains to be seen whether this change in mentalities will result, in the coming years, in a new stage in French policy to combat smoking.