What do the dots on nicotine pouch tins mean?
The dots on the lid are a strength scale, but each brand draws its own. Here is how to read them, and why the mg number is the only figure worth trusting.
By Hektor Jonsson · Updated October 2026
Quick answer: The dots on a nicotine pouch tin show how strong that tin is within its own brand's range. More dots means a stronger tin from that brand. The scale is not shared between brands, so two dots on a ZYN tin and two dots on a VELO tin are different strengths. Read the mg per pouch instead.
The dots on a nicotine pouch tin show how strong the tin is within that brand's own range. More filled dots means a stronger tin from the same brand. The scale is not shared between brands, so two dots on a ZYN tin and two dots on a VELO tin are not the same strength, and neither tells you much about a Nordic Spirit tin. The only number that compares across brands is the mg per pouch, which is printed on the tin too, usually on the side or the base.
Why brands use dots at all
Dots are a quick visual cue for the shelf. A shop assistant or a regular customer can tell a brand's "regular" from its "strong" at a glance without reading small print. The system came from Swedish snus, where tins have carried strength dots for years, and tobacco-free pouch brands kept it.
The problem is that each brand sets the scale against its own range. A brand whose weakest tin is 6mg and whose strongest is 11mg has to spread its dots across that span. A brand that runs from 10mg to 50mg spreads its dots across a very different span. The same dot count ends up meaning two different things.
How the main brands mark strength
| Brand | Strength marking | Strengths we stock | Where the top of the scale sits |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZYN | Dots on the lid, plus words like Strong and X Strong | 1.5mg, 3mg, 6mg, 9mg, 9.5mg, 11mg, 12.5mg, 13.5mg | 13.5mg (Blackcurrant Frost, Blueberry Frost, Menthol Ice) |
| VELO | Dots on the lid | 4mg, 6mg, 8mg, 10mg, 11mg | 11mg (Freezing Peppermint, Peppermint Storm) |
| Nordic Spirit | Words (Regular, Strong, Max) with a dot strip | 6mg, 9mg, 17mg | 17mg (Max Frosty Mint, Max Frosty Berry) |
| Pablo | Colour editions rather than dots | 10mg, 17mg, 30mg, 50mg | 50mg (Exclusive) |
| Killa | Words (Extra Strong, Exclusive) | 16mg, 16.5mg | 16.5mg |
ZYN has the widest spread of any mainstream brand. In the range we stock, the 1.5mg and 3mg slims sit at the bottom of the dot scale, the 6mg Mini Strong tins in the middle, the 9mg to 11mg tins above that, and the 12.5mg XX Strong and 13.5mg Frost tins at the top. So a top-of-scale ZYN is 13.5mg. See ZYN strengths explained for every tin.
VELO runs from 4mg to 11mg. A full set of dots on a VELO tin means 11mg, which is Strong on our bands, not X-Strong. A VELO tin with the most dots is weaker than a ZYN tin with the most dots, and both are weaker than a one-dot Pablo. The VELO range covers all five strengths.
Nordic Spirit leans on words. Regular is 6mg, Strong is 9mg and Max is 17mg. The jump from Strong to Max is big, nearly double, which catches people out who assume the next step up is a small one.
Pablo does not bother with dots. Silver Edition is 10mg, Gold Edition is 17mg, Red and Ice Cold are 30mg, and Exclusive is 50mg. The colours do the same job as dots but only make sense inside the Pablo range.
Why dots cannot be compared across brands
Put the top of each scale side by side and the problem is obvious. The strongest VELO is 11mg. The strongest ZYN is 13.5mg. The strongest Nordic Spirit is 17mg. The strongest Pablo is 50mg. If you treated "all the dots" as the same strength, you could go from an 11mg tin to a 50mg tin without noticing the label change.
The same is true at the bottom. The weakest ZYN is 1.5mg. The weakest Pablo is 10mg, which is already Strong on our bands. A beginner who picks "the one with the fewest dots" from the Pablo shelf is starting at nearly seven times the nicotine of the gentlest ZYN.
A conversion table that actually works
Instead of converting dots to dots, convert each brand's tier to one of our four bands. The bands are defined by mg per pouch, so they hold across every brand on the site.
| Our band | Nicotine per pouch | ZYN | VELO | Nordic Spirit | Pablo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low | Up to 6mg | 1.5mg, 3mg, 6mg | 4mg, 6mg | 6mg Regular | None |
| Medium | 6mg to 9mg | 9mg | 8mg | 9mg Strong | None |
| Strong | 9mg to 12mg | 9.5mg, 11mg | 10mg, 11mg | None | 10mg Silver |
| X-Strong | 12mg and above | 12.5mg, 13.5mg | None | 17mg Max | 17mg Gold, 30mg Red, 50mg Exclusive |
Once you know your band, the strength browse pages filter every brand to that range, and the dots stop mattering.
What to read instead of the dots
The mg per pouch. It is on every tin, though sometimes in small print on the side or base rather than on the lid. Two things to watch for: a few brands print mg per gram rather than per pouch (Iceberg and Siberia both do), which inflates the number, and some tins carry a word like "strong" that only means strong for that brand. Our guide to reading a nicotine pouch label covers both. The nicotine pouch strength guide explains what to do with the number once you have it.
Frequently asked questions
Do more dots always mean a stronger pouch?
Within one brand, yes. Across brands, no. A four-dot VELO at 11mg is weaker than a Nordic Spirit Max at 17mg, and far weaker than any Pablo.
Is a ZYN with two dots the same as a VELO with two dots?
No. Each brand spreads its dots across its own range, and the two ranges are different sizes. Check the mg per pouch on each tin and compare those.
What do the dots on Pablo tins mean?
Pablo does not use dots. It uses colour editions: Silver (10mg), Gold (17mg), Red and Ice Cold (30mg) and Exclusive (50mg). Every Pablo is Strong or X-Strong on our bands.
Why does my tin say "strong" but feel weak?
Because "strong" is relative to that brand's range. Nordic Spirit Strong is 9mg, which is Medium on our scale. If you came from a 16mg Killa, a 9mg tin will feel soft regardless of the word on the lid.
Related guides
Nicotine pouch specialist · Updated October 2026
Hektor has been buying, testing and writing about nicotine pouches since the first Swedish tobacco-free brands reached the UK. He has worked through hundreds of tins across every major brand and strength, from gentle 3mg minis to the extra strong slims, and writes the guides here at snus & pouches. His focus is simple: honest, jargon-free help that gets you to the right pouch faster. He writes about products and flavour, not medical advice. For health questions he points readers to the NHS.
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