What is a vape coil?
A vape coil, sometimes called a coil head or atomiser, is a wire or mesh strip wrapped in cotton wicking, seated inside the tank or pod itself. Every vape has three parts, the battery, the tank or pod, and the coil, and it is the coil that turns your e-liquid into vapour.
Fire the device and the coil heats the e-liquid held in its wick, turning it into vapour, while the cotton soaks up more from the tank between puffs. That constant heating is why coils burn out, and because the coil is a replaceable part, you swap the coil alone and keep the tank and kit around it.
Ohms and resistance: which coil should I choose?
Ohms measure the coil's electrical resistance, and that number sets how much vapour it makes and how much power it needs. The real decision, though, is your draw style. As a rough rule of thumb, a mouth-to-lung device wants a coil above about 0.7 Ohms, while a direct-to-lung device wants one below about 0.4 Ohms. Coils in between give a restricted direct-to-lung (RDTL) draw, a middle ground between the two: the Innokin Z range, for instance, is tagged for both MTL and RDTL vaping. The table below sorts the two main families, and once you have picked, match your liquid to it from our nicotine salt e-liquids and shortfill e-liquids.
| Resistance band |
Draw style |
Liquid pairing |
Vapour |
| Above about 0.7 Ohms (MTL) |
Tight, cigarette-style mouth-to-lung |
High-PG or 50/50 |
Less, cooler |
| Below about 0.4 Ohms (sub-ohm) |
Open, direct-to-lung |
Higher-VG, around 70% VG |
More, warmer |
Lower resistance heats faster and hotter and needs more power, which is why every coil carries a recommended wattage band. Fixed-output kits are matched to their coil by design and most modern adjustable kits detect the resistance for you, but if you can set the wattage, stay inside the printed band.
Mesh coils vs standard coils
A standard coil is a single wound wire. A mesh coil replaces that with a thin metal net, which puts far more surface area against the wick. It heats more of your liquid at once and warms up evenly, so you get cleaner, more consistent flavour and more vapour. Mesh comes in both MTL and sub-ohm forms, and most of the coils here are mesh. There is also one ceramic option, the SMOK Nord 1.4 Ohms Ceramic, which wicks through porous ceramic rather than cotton.
Which coil fits my kit?
There is no universal coil. Each coil family is built for the tank or pod it ships with, so a SMOK Vape Pen 22 will not accept an Aspire coil. The good news is that most brands make their coils cross-compatible within their own range, so several Innokin Z coils fit more than one Innokin kit.
Start with your brand: browse SMOK coils, Aspire coils, Geekvape coils and Innokin coils, and check the coil is listed for your exact device before you buy.
How often should I change my coil?
How long a coil lasts in a vape depends on how much you vape, the e-liquid you choose and the wattage you vape at. As a rough guide:
- Heavy vaper, on the kit right through the day: every four to six days
- Medium vaper, vaping regularly: up to fourteen days
- Light or social vaper: up to three weeks
You will know a coil is on the way out when the flavour fades, a burnt edge creeps in and the vapour drops off. MTL coils generally outlast direct-to-lung coils, simply because they use less power.
Priming a new vape coil
A fresh coil needs to soak before its first draw, or the wick scorches and you get that burnt taste. Drip a little e-liquid straight into the wicking holes on the side of the coil, fit it, fill the tank and leave it to stand for around five minutes so the cotton saturates fully. Then start at a low power and work up until the vape feels right.
For a pod it is simpler: fill it, leave it to settle for a few minutes, and give it a moment again each time you refill.
Vape coil FAQs
Why is my new coil burnt on the first draw?
Three things usually cause it. The coil was not primed, so the wick was still dry. The power is set too high for the coil's resistance. Or the e-liquid has run low and the wick is no longer staying wet. Prime it before you vape, keep the wattage inside the coil's band, and top up before the tank gets too low.
Why is my vape leaking?
Usually it is one of three things: the tank is overfilled, so fill it to about two thirds and leave the air gap; the coil is not seated squarely; or a filling port has been left open. Check each one and a leak normally clears.
Which resistance do I need for my device?
Start with what the kit was built for. If a coil came in the box, buy the same resistance again. Otherwise check which coil family your device takes, then pick a higher resistance for a tight mouth-to-lung inhale or a lower one for open sub-ohm clouds.
Do mesh coils last longer?
Usually, yes. Because the mesh heats evenly across its whole surface, there are no hot spots to scorch the wick early, so a mesh coil tends to hold its flavour and outlast a standard wire coil.
Can I clean a vape coil instead of replacing it?
Not really, for the replacement coils sold here. The wick is fixed inside the coil head, so once the cotton is burnt the flavour does not come back, and the fix is a fresh coil. Dry-burn cleaning only applies to rebuildable coils, where the wick comes out first.
Why has my e-liquid gone dark in the tank?
It is usually nothing to worry about. Over time, heat, light and air darken e-liquid, and a used coil speeds it up. If the flavour has turned with it, fit a fresh coil or pod and the taste comes back.
