Best Vape Starter Kits UK: 8 Beginner Kits Worth Buying

• A starter kit is a refillable device sold with everything you need except the e-liquid: the battery, a pod or tank, a coil and usually a charging cable.
• The Vaporesso Xros 4 Mini is the kit we’d hand most beginners. Fast USB-C charging, a 0.4Ω to 1.2Ω pod range and button or draw activation.
• Pick a pod kit if you want simple, a pen kit like the Innokin Endura T18II if you want the closest thing to a cigarette, and the OXVA Xlim Pro 2 if you want room to grow.
• Pair every kit here with 10ml nic salts at 10mg or 20mg if you’re switching from cigarettes. All eight run 50/50 liquid without complaint.
• Disposables have been banned in the UK since 1 June 2025, so a refillable starter kit is the direct replacement, and it costs a fraction as much per week.

What counts as a starter kit?

A vape starter kit is a boxed, ready-to-go device: a built-in battery, one or two pods or a small tank, a coil already fitted and usually a USB cable. What it doesn’t include is the e-liquid, which you buy separately in 10ml bottles at whatever strength suits you.

Almost every kit worth recommending to a beginner is a pod kit or a pen kit. Both are mouth-to-lung devices: you draw the vapour into your mouth first and then inhale, as you would with a cigarette. That style suits the higher nicotine strengths a new vaper needs. If you’re not sure which style you are, our guide on how to choose the right vape kit walks through it.

Since the UK ban on single-use vapes on 1 June 2025, refillable kits like these are what you buy instead. A 10ml bottle lasts most people around a week, so the weekly cost is far lower than disposables ever were.

How we picked these eight

Every kit here is one we stock in volume, which matters because a starter kit is only as good as the supply of pods and coils behind it. Older names like the Endura T18E, SMOK Priv N19 and OXVA Xlim V2 have been left out, because their replacements are better in every way that matters to a beginner.

We judged each kit on how easy it is to fill, battery life relative to size, how well it handles 50/50 nic salts at 10mg to 20mg, and the cost of keeping it in pods or coils. None of the picks need a spare battery, a separate charger or any knowledge of ohms.

The best vape starter kits in the UK

1. Vaporesso Xros 4 Mini Pod Kit

Best overall for a first kit. The Xros range has been the default beginner recommendation in UK shops for years, and the 4 Mini keeps everything that made it popular while fixing the slow charging: the 1000mAh battery refills over USB-C in about 30 minutes. Fire it by drawing or with the button, and use the airflow slider to tighten the draw to cigarette-like.

It ships with a 0.4Ω mesh pod, which is on the airier side, but takes any standard Xros pod from 0.4Ω to 1.2Ω, so switching to a 0.8Ω or 1.2Ω pod for nic salts is easy. Smart Mode reads the coil and sets the power for you.

Battery 1000mAh · Pod 2ml, top fill · Coils 0.4Ω to 1.2Ω Xros pods · Up to 16W · Best with 10mg to 20mg nic salts

2. OXVA Xlim Pro 2 Pod Kit

Best if you want a kit you won’t outgrow. The Xlim Pro 2 has a 1300mAh battery and an adjustable 5W to 30W output, which in practice just means you nudge the power up or down until the flavour is right. Draw and button activation are both built in.

The box includes two top-filling pods, a 0.6Ω for a warmer draw and a 0.8Ω for a tight mouth-to-lung hit with salts. It also accepts the older Xlim V2 and Xlim EZ pods, which is why the V2 kit has left this list: the Pro 2 runs the same pods with more battery and more control.

Battery 1300mAh · Pod 2ml, top fill · 0.6Ω and 0.8Ω pods included · 5W to 30W · Best with 10mg salts on the 0.6Ω, 20mg on the 0.8Ω

3. Innokin Endura T18II Starter Kit

Best pen kit for ex-smokers. The original Endura T18 is probably the most recommended starter kit in UK stop-smoking services, and the T18II adds a larger 1300mAh battery and three power settings (cool, medium and warm) chosen with the button. It replaces the T18E on this list.

The Prism tank holds 1.8ml, fills from the top and runs 1.5Ω coils, which give a tight draw and make a 10ml of 18mg or 20mg last a long time. Two coils come in the box. Charging is micro-USB, the one sign of its age, but the cable is included.

Battery 1300mAh · Tank 1.8ml, top fill · 1.5Ω Prism coils · 10.5W to 13.5W · Best with 12mg to 20mg

4. Aspire Gotek Pro Pod Kit

Best battery life in a simple draw-activated kit. The Gotek Pro squeezes a 1500mAh cell into a compact box that recharges over USB-C at 1A, in under an hour from flat. No buttons, no settings. The chipset holds a constant 3.4V output, so the hit stays consistent from full charge to the last few percent.

The pod uses a built-in 0.8Ω mesh coil, so when the flavour fades you swap the whole pod. A viewing window shows your liquid level, the fill port at the base closes with a rubber bung, and the bottom airflow is adjustable.

Battery 1500mAh · Bottom-fill pod with built-in 0.8Ω mesh coil · 13W to 16W · Best with 10mg to 20mg nic salts

5. Aspire Gotek X Pod Kit

Best cheap pod kit. The Gotek X is the smaller sibling of the Pro, with a 650mAh battery and a clear body. It’s the kit for trying refillable vaping without spending much, or as a spare for the car. Draw-activated, no buttons, USB-C charging.

Its 2ml pod takes replaceable 0.8Ω AF mesh coils at 10W to 13W and runs comfortably on 50/50 salts. The compromise is battery life: a heavy vaper will need to top up during the day.

Battery 650mAh · Pod 2ml, side fill · Replaceable 0.8Ω mesh coils · 10W to 13W · Best with 10mg to 20mg nic salts

6. Innokin Jem Pen Style Kit

Best slim pen. At 16mm across, the Jem is the narrowest device here and the closest in the hand to a cigarette. A 1000mAh battery, a single fire button and a three-colour LED for charge level, in a stainless steel tube that takes knocks better than any plastic pod kit.

The 2ml tank fills from the top with a twist-off cap and ships with two 1.6Ω kanthal coils, giving a firm 13W mouth-to-lung draw that suits 12mg to 20mg liquid. Like the Endura it charges over micro-USB, cable included.

Battery 1000mAh · Tank 2ml, top fill · 1.6Ω coils, two included · 13W constant · Best with 12mg to 20mg

7. Vaporesso Eco Nano Pro Pod Kit

Best for anyone coming straight from disposables. The Eco Nano Pro is built to feel like a big-puff bar: draw-activated, a 1000mAh battery, and a pod with a built-in Corex mesh coil that Vaporesso rates at up to around 25,000 puffs in Eco mode. Power mode gives a warmer, stronger hit when you want it.

The 2ml pod ships at 0.6Ω, with 0.8Ω and 1.2Ω versions available for a tighter draw. Charging is USB-C but the cable isn’t in the box.

Battery 1000mAh · Pod 2ml, built-in mesh coil · 0.6Ω included, 0.8Ω and 1.2Ω available · Eco and Power modes · Best with 10mg to 20mg nic salts

8. Uwell Caliburn A3S Pod Kit

Best for flavour in a tiny device. The Caliburn is the other long-running favourite alongside the Xros, and the A3S is the compact, buttonless version. Its 16W output on a 0.8Ω mesh pod gives the clean, dense flavour Uwell is known for, and it comes with a second, tighter 1.0Ω pod in the box.

The trade-off is the 520mAh battery, the smallest here. It charges quickly at 2A over USB-C, but no cable is included. Best for someone who vapes a few times an hour, or as a second kit for evenings out.

Battery 520mAh · Pod 2ml, side fill · 0.8Ω and 1.0Ω pods included · 16W · Best with 10mg to 20mg nic salts

All eight side by side

All eight use 2ml pods or tanks, apart from the T18II at 1.8ml, and run 50/50 e-liquid.

Which one should you actually buy?

If you smoke 15 or more a day. Go for the Endura T18II or the Jem pen with a 10ml of 18mg or 20mg. The tight draw delivers nicotine the way a cigarette does. The best vape kits for ex-smokers guide goes deeper on this.

If you’ve been using disposables. The Eco Nano Pro or the Gotek Pro will feel most familiar: draw-activated, big battery, no buttons. See our best pod kits for beginners round-up for more options in this style.

If you want one kit for the next couple of years. The Xlim Pro 2. Adjustable power and two pods cover everything from a tight 20mg salt hit to a looser 6mg draw as you cut down.

If you just want the safe answer. The Xros 4 Mini. Fewest complaints, widest pod range, quickest charge.

Setting up your first kit

1. 1
   Charge it fully before the first use. Most kits ship with a partial charge. Use a phone charger or laptop port, not a fast charger above 2A.
2. 2
   Fill the pod or tank and wait five minutes. The cotton in a new coil needs time to soak. Vaping straight away burns it for good.
3. 3
   Take slow, gentle draws. Pull steadily for three or four seconds and let the coil do the work. Hard, short drags cause spitback.
4. 4
   Change the coil or pod when the flavour goes flat. Usually one to three weeks. A burnt taste that doesn’t go away means it’s overdue.

What to fill it with, and what it’ll cost to run

All eight kits run coils at 0.4Ω or above, so they want 50/50 e-liquid in 10ml bottles, not thick shortfills. For anyone coming off cigarettes, 10ml nic salts at 10mg or 20mg are the right start: salts are smoother at high strength than freebase, so you get the nicotine without a harsh throat hit.

From 1 October 2026 the UK Vaping Products Duty adds £2.20 per 10ml plus VAT to every bottle, £2.64 at the till. Stock released before that date can be sold at pre-duty prices until 31 March 2027, so there’s a real saving in buying your regular flavour early. We’ve broken down what it means for your weekly spend in how much will vape prices go up.

The other running cost is pods and coils. Kits with replaceable coils (Endura, Jem, Gotek X) are cheapest to keep going; built-in pod kits (Gotek Pro, Eco Nano Pro) cost a little more per change but are cleaner. Either way, keep a spare in the drawer.

Pick a kit, add a couple of 10ml nic salts, and you’re set for the week

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