Monthly US searches for “510 thread battery” have edged past “disposable vape,” a small milestone that a New Jersey retailer says hints at where buyer attention is heading.
American shoppers are quietly redirecting their attention from throwaway vapes toward the reusable hardware that replaces them, and the shift is now showing up in what they type into search engines.
According to a new analysis of US search data by Discount Vape Pen, an online vaping store based in New Jersey that specializes in refillable 510-thread cartridge batteries, the term “510 thread battery” now draws about 30,500 search clicks a month across the country, narrowly ahead of “disposable vape” at roughly 29,500. Searches for the reusable term are up about 20% since 2021, while interest in disposables has fallen about 36% from its 2022 peak.
The more striking number is how fast the gap has closed. In 2022, Americans searched for disposable vapes about 2.42 times as often as for 510-thread batteries. By 2025 that ratio had compressed to 1.46 to one.
“What people search for today is usually a preview of what they buy tomorrow,” said James Smith, who leads the vaping community team at Discount Vape Pen. “The disposable still wins at the register, but the curiosity has clearly moved toward hardware people can charge and refill.”
Disposables, for now, remain firmly on top of the sales charts. Retail scanner figures compiled by the CDC Foundation put them at 58.1% of US e-cigarette units sold by the middle of 2024, more than double their roughly 26% share in early 2020. By that measure the throwaway device has never been more popular.
But the market has also drawn intense scrutiny and supply disruption. Reuters has reported how the disposable boom prompted regulators in the United States and abroad to introduce restrictions and bans, leaving popular products repeatedly out of stock. Each gap on the shelf, the company argues, gives committed users a reason to look for something more dependable.
There is a simple economic logic underneath the trend. A disposable is bought, used briefly, and binned, so the spending repeats every week or two. A 510-thread battery is a single purchase that recharges and refills for months, which tends to matter more whenever budgets are tight.
Discount Vape Pen is careful not to overstate the case. Disposables are not disappearing, and the company expects them to remain the most common device type for years. Its argument is narrower: search behavior has historically run ahead of sales, and right now that signal points toward refillable systems.
“The register tells you what happened last month,” Smith said. “Search tells you what people are weighing up right now.”
