Little Cigar or Filtered Cigar?

The difference between Filtered Cigars and Little Cigars

Let’s start off with one simple statement. Little Cigars and Filtered Cigars are NOT the same thing, and the words are not interchangeable. Little Cigars are considered to be much closer in flavor and draw to traditional Cigarettes and therefore come with a heftier price tag. Filtered Cigars on the other hand are closer related to traditional Cigars. They are not meant to be inhaled like cigarettes but instead smoked similarly to Premium Cigars. 

Let’s take Swisher Sweets for example. They offer both Filtered and Little Cigar versions of their products. Many know of the famous Swisher Sweets Little Cigars that can go for $30 or more per carton, but few people realize that Santa Fe Filtered Cigars are in fact a Swisher Sweets products disguised under a different name and Cigar style. Santa Fe Filtered Cigars are much harsher to smoke and considerably stronger, but they are made in a very similar fashion to the smooth, great tasting, easy draw Swisher Sweets. What gives? Well, the Santa Fe Filtered Cigars are packed tighter with more tobacco. Although the Filtered Cigars and Little Cigars look similar side by side, they offer very different smoking experiences. 

Of course there are some exceptions. Some Filtered Cigars, like Crown Appeal for example pride themselves on offering the little cigar style and quality while maintaining the Filtered Cigar price. 

To put all this in simple words: 

Filtered Cigars offer a closer smoking experience to traditional Premium Cigars.
Little Cigars offer a similar draw and feel to Cigarettes. 

Now lets focus more on the difference between Cigarettes and Little Cigars now. The biggest thing distinguishing these two is the principal ingredient: The Tobacco. The Tobacco used in Little Cigars can be aged or fermented to imbue the many flavors. Cigarettes on the hand contain blends of tobaccos that give them the particular flavors and are not aged or fermented. Other than that there are few differences. The filters can be similar and the paper the tobacco is wrapped in can be similar as well. 

General rule of thumb: 

Cheaper Cigars – Filtered Cigars
More expensive – Little Cigars