The Dominican Republic remains the world’s top exporter of cigars, producing over 8.4 billion cigars each year, according to Iván Hernández Guzmán, director of the Dominican Tobacco Institute (Intabaco). Of this total, more than 181 million are handcrafted, while over 8.2 billion are made using machinery.
Speaking at the Dominican Cigar Expo 2025 in Santiago, Hernández Guzmán highlighted tobacco’s vital role in the national economy, saying the industry contributes 10% of the country’s exports and generates more than $1.34 billion annually—second only to gold. It is the largest employer in free trade zones, creating over 40,000 jobs in that sector and more than 110,000 jobs nationwide. There are 160 tobacco-processing companies across 15 provinces, yielding over 330,000 quintals of tobacco each year.
For its premium cigar exports, 88% go to the United States and 10% to the European Union.