The increased unemployment rates during the 1990s were followed by decreased cigarette consumption. The aim of this study was to analyse the association between unemployment and smoking habits among young men and women during times of prosperity and recession. Two groups of final-year pupils were surveyed five years after leaving school, at the age of 21, in 1986 (boom) and 1994 (recession). The boom group included 1083 pupils; the recession group 898 pupils. The non-response rate was 2% in the boom group and 10% in the recession group. Daily tobacco use was measured through self-administered questionnaires. Daily cigarette smoking was of a lower magnitude during the recession (9.7% among men and 21.9% among women) compared to the boom (19.8% and 37.8%, respectively). A low level of education, and among women also financial problems and motherhood, were associated with more frequent smoking. Unemployment was associated with tobacco consumption, especially among women and during the boom. Thus, smoking habits were found to be a question of both unemployment and tobacco trends in society.