Native vs Brand-Name Cigarettes: What's the Difference?

The short answer: brand-name cigarettes are the national labels made by Canada's large tobacco companies — Du Maurier, Player's, Export A, Belmont and the rest. Native cigarettes are made by First Nations manufacturers, and the biggest practical difference for buyers is price: a native carton usually costs a fraction of a brand-name carton.

What are brand-name cigarettes?

Brand-name cigarettes are the ones you see behind the counter at any Canadian convenience store. Almost all of them come from three companies:

• Imperial Tobacco Canada — Du Maurier, Player's, John Player Special, Pall Mall, Matinée and Vogue.
• Rothmans, Benson & Hedges — Belmont, Canadian Classics, Benson & Hedges, Rothmans and Next.
• JTI-Macdonald — Export A, Macdonald and LD.

Our guide to who makes Canada's cigarette brands goes through each company in more detail. You can see the brands we carry in our Brand Name section.

What are native cigarettes?

Native cigarettes are manufactured by First Nations-owned companies, mostly in Ontario and Quebec. Brands such as dM, Canadian Goose, Rolled Gold, Deerfield, Belmont (native) and Yellowstone are all native brands. They are sold in the same formats as brand-name cigarettes — packs and cartons of 200 — and you'll find the full range in our Native Brand section.

Why are native cigarettes cheaper?

Price is the main reason most customers try native brands. A few things drive the gap:

• Different manufacturers and cost structures. Native brands are made by smaller, independent manufacturers rather than multinational companies with national marketing budgets.
• Tax treatment. Tobacco taxes in Canada are set federally and provincially, and how they apply depends on where and how cigarettes are sold. This is a big part of why shelf prices vary so much between stores and regions.
• Packaging and distribution. Native brands generally go through shorter distribution chains.

Every product page on our site lists the current carton price, so you can compare directly. Prices change with taxes and supply, so we don't quote them in guides.

Is there a difference in the cigarettes themselves?

Both native and brand-name cigarettes are made from blended tobacco, wrapped in paper with a filter, and sold in regular and king-size formats. Blends differ from brand to brand in both groups, the same way two brand-name labels differ from each other. The honest answer is that preference is personal: plenty of customers switch between both.

What we can say plainly is that no cigarette is safer than another. Different packaging, prices or blends don't change the health risks of smoking.

Where do GRE and bagged cigarettes fit?

GRE stands for Grand River Enterprises, a First Nations manufacturer on the Six Nations of the Grand River in southern Ontario. GRE brands are native cigarettes, but because the company is so well known we list them separately in our GRE section — Putters, DK's, Sago and more.

Bagged cigarettes are native cigarettes sold loose in a resealable bag rather than in packs. Without the packs and carton box, they're the lowest cost per cigarette in the store. See Bagged Cigarettes.

Can I order native cigarettes online in Canada?

Yes. White Birch Post sells native, GRE and brand-name cigarettes online to adults 19 and over. Orders in Greater Sudbury can be delivered the same day when placed before the daily cut-off, and orders everywhere else in Canada — except Nunavut — ship by tracked Canada Post. Our guide to ordering tobacco online in Ontario covers age checks, ID and shipping.

Quick comparison

	Brand name	Native
Made by	Imperial, RBH, JTI-Macdonald	First Nations manufacturers
Examples	Du Maurier, Player's, Export A	dM, Canadian Goose, Putters
Price per carton	Higher	Usually much lower
Formats	Packs and cartons, regular and king size	Packs, cartons and bags

White Birch Post sells to adults 19 and over only. Smoking is harmful to your health. If you're thinking about cutting back or quitting, our responsible use page lists free Canadian support services.