Shortfill E-Liquid: What It Is & How to Use It

Shortfills are one of those vaping ideas that seem slightly strange until you understand the regulation that created them.

You buy a big bottle of flavoured vape juice. The bottle isn't quite full. The e-liquid contains no nicotine. If you want nicotine, you add it yourself using one or more little 10ml bottles.

That is shortfill e-liquid in a nutshell.

Shortfills became popular because they solved a very specific problem for UK vapers who used high-powered equipment and low nicotine strengths. Since then, the e-liquid market has changed dramatically. Nic salts and pod systems have become much more important, disposable-style flavours have influenced almost every major e-liquid brand and cooling has become common even in flavours that don't have words such as "Ice" or "Frozen" in their names.

Shortfills have evolved too, but they still occupy their own distinctive corner of the market: big bottles, low nicotine, high-output hardware and plenty of rich fruit, sweet, dessert and drink flavours.

Here's how they work, how much nicotine to add and why the arrival of the UK's new vape duty could make the economics of shortfills look very different.

Why Were Shortfills Invented?

The shortfill is essentially a vaping-industry solution to a regulatory problem.

Under the UK's Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, nicotine-containing e-liquid sold to consumers is limited to a maximum of 10ml per refill container. Nicotine concentration is also limited to 20mg/ml.

Those rules aren't particularly inconvenient if you use a small MTL device and perhaps only consume a few millilitres of relatively strong e-liquid each day.

They become much more noticeable if you use a high-powered DTL vape at 3mg/ml.

A sub-ohm tank can get through 10ml surprisingly quickly. Buying all of that liquid as individual 10ml bottles means:

• opening lots of small bottles;
• creating more packaging waste;
• carrying several bottles around; and
• generally making something very simple rather inconvenient.

Nicotine-free e-liquid wasn't subject to the same 10ml restriction, so manufacturers began selling much larger bottles without nicotine and leaving enough empty space for consumers to add legal 10ml nicotine shots themselves.

The shortfill vape juice was born.

Why Are They Called Shortfills?

Because the bottle is deliberately filled short of its maximum capacity.

A 60ml bottle might contain only 50ml of vape juice. A 120ml bottle might contain 100ml.

The unused space isn't a manufacturing mistake. It's there so that you can add nicotine without needing to transfer everything into a second bottle.

You'll sometimes see the term written as short fill, but "shortfill" has become the standard spelling used by most UK vape retailers and manufacturers.

How the Shortfill Market Has Changed

When shortfills first became a major part of UK vaping, the hardware landscape looked quite different.

Large sub-ohm tanks and vape mods were extremely popular, 3mg freebase nicotine was the default for many experienced vapers and nic salts were only beginning to emerge.

Shortfills therefore became closely associated with:

• high-VG e-liquid;
• DTL vaping;
• low nicotine strengths;
• large vapour clouds; and
• big, sweet flavour profiles.

Custards, cakes, doughnuts, sweets, cereals, fizzy drinks and rich fruit mixtures all became natural shortfill territory.

Then Nic Salts and Disposable-Style Flavours Took Over the Small-Bottle Market

The arrival of nic salts helped make small pod systems much more satisfying at higher nicotine strengths. Prefilled and disposable devices then pushed flavour intensity in another direction entirely.

Modern nic salts often borrow heavily from that prefilled-vape flavour style:

• very bright fruit;
• candy-like sweetness;
• blue raspberry and mixed berry combinations;
• slush, soda and ice-pop profiles; and
• frequent cooling.

The cooling point is particularly interesting.

Years ago, if an e-liquid contained noticeable menthol, the name would usually tell you. It might be called Strawberry Ice, Frozen Berries or Arctic Something-or-Other.

With many modern nic salts, cooling has become part of the expected flavour style. A berry or candy flavour may have a cool finish even when the word "Ice" never appears on the label.

That isn't true of every nic salt, of course, but it has become common enough that anyone who actively dislikes cooling should read flavour descriptions rather than relying entirely on the name.

Shortfills Still Feel More Old-School

Shortfills have absorbed some of those trends, and you'll certainly find menthol, ice and chilled shortfills today.

As a broad category, though, they still tend to offer much more of the traditional enthusiast e-liquid experience.

You'll find plenty of:

• vanilla custards;
• bakery flavours;
• doughnuts;
• sherbets;
• candy;
• coffee;
• cola and other drinks;
• straight fruit; and
• complex dessert blends.

Cooling is often something you deliberately choose rather than something that quietly turns up at the end of every puff.

That distinction makes shortfills especially appealing if you like sweet or rich flavours but aren't a fan of the cool finish common in modern prefilled-style e-liquid.

Shortfills vs Nic Salts

How Do You Use Shortfill E-Liquid?

If you want 0mg nicotine, there's very little to explain. Open the bottle, fill your vape and use it like any other e-liquid.

If you want nicotine, you'll need one or more nicotine shots.

Simply ELiquid's standard nic shots contain 10ml of 18mg/ml nicotine solution and are designed specifically for mixing with shortfills.

How to Add a Nic Shot to a Shortfill

1. Check how much e-liquid is actually in the bottle. Don't look only at the bottle's maximum capacity.
2. Work out how many shots you need. The standard examples are one shot for 50ml in a 60ml bottle and two shots for 100ml in a 120ml bottle.
3. Remove the cap and nozzle if necessary. Some newer shortfill bottles have easier nic-shot filling systems, while others require the nozzle to be lifted out.
4. Pour in the nicotine shot or shots.
5. Replace the nozzle and cap securely.
6. Shake the bottle thoroughly for around 30–60 seconds.
7. Fill your tank or pod.

You don't usually need to leave the bottle steeping for days after adding a nic shot. The e-liquid was already a finished commercial recipe. The important thing is simply to mix the nicotine through the bottle thoroughly.

How Many Nic Shots Do I Need?

For the two standard shortfill formats, the maths is pleasantly simple.

Why Does One 18mg Shot Make 50ml into 3mg?

A 10ml bottle at 18mg/ml contains:

Add that to 50ml of nicotine-free shortfill and you have 60ml in total:

Why Do Two Shots Work with a 100ml Shortfill?

Two shots contain 360mg of nicotine:

Add them to 100ml of shortfill and the total is 120ml:

Same final strength, just twice as much liquid.

Can You Add Less Than a Full Nic Shot?

Absolutely.

A shortfill doesn't somehow require nicotine in order to work. You can vape it at 0mg or add less nicotine if 3mg is stronger than you want.

There is one small mathematical trap, though.

If you add half of an 18mg nic shot to a 50ml shortfill, you don't get exactly 1.5mg/ml because your final volume is only 55ml rather than 60ml.

Five millilitres of 18mg liquid contains 90mg of nicotine:

If you're happy with an approximate lower strength, that's fine. If you want a precise result, use an e-liquid calculator or replace the unused bottle capacity with compatible nicotine-free base.

Can You Add More Nicotine to Make 6mg Shortfill?

Sometimes, but bottle capacity becomes the problem.

A standard 50ml shortfill in a 60ml bottle only has room for one shot. To turn 50ml of nicotine-free liquid into a true 6mg/ml mixture using 18mg shots, you'd need substantially more nicotine solution than the bottle can hold.

Some larger shortfills are deliberately sold with enough headspace to accommodate additional shots, but don't assume this is the case.

Check the manufacturer's instructions and make sure you're calculating the final nicotine concentration from the actual liquid volume.

Simply ELiquid Can Often Add the Nic Shots to Your Order

You don't necessarily need to remember to buy the shots separately.

Many shortfill product pages on Simply ELiquid let you select the appropriate nicotine option when ordering, often allowing you to add the required shot or shots for just £1 extra.

Where that option is available, it's an easy way to make sure the shots arrive with the shortfill instead of discovering after delivery that you've bought 100ml of lovely vape juice and no nicotine to put in it.

You can also buy 18mg nicotine shots separately if you prefer to keep a few on hand.

What Vape Should You Use with Shortfills?

Most shortfills are associated with RDL and DTL vaping because those devices use comparatively large quantities of e-liquid.

They're also commonly high in VG.

A typical 70VG/30PG shortfill works well with:

• sub-ohm vape kits;
• powerful pod mods;
• DTL tanks; and
• lower-resistance RDL coils designed for thicker e-liquid.

It may not wick properly in a tiny MTL pod designed around 50/50 liquid.

That said, not every shortfill is 70VG. Simply ELiquid also stocks some larger 50/50 liquids, so always check the individual product rather than treating bottle size as a PG/VG specification.

Why Are Shortfills Usually Low Nicotine?

Because the hardware they tend to accompany produces far more vapour per puff.

A small MTL pod might use 10mg or 20mg nic salt because each puff contains a relatively modest amount of aerosol.

A DTL tank can vaporise several times more e-liquid during a single inhale. Using the same nicotine concentration would therefore deliver far more nicotine.

That's why 0mg and 3mg/ml remain natural shortfill strengths.

If you've just switched from smoking and need a strong nicotine hit, a shortfill and high-powered DTL kit may therefore not be the most practical place to start. A smaller pod with an appropriately strong nic salt may suit you better.

Do Nic Shots Dilute the Flavour?

Technically, yes. You're adding unflavoured liquid to flavoured liquid.

Shortfills are normally formulated with that in mind, though. A properly designed shortfill should still taste as intended after adding the expected number of nicotine shots.

Problems are more likely if you add substantially more unflavoured liquid than the recipe was designed to accommodate.

If you're vaping the shortfill at 0mg, you may occasionally find the flavour slightly stronger than it would be after the recommended shot is added.

Do You Have to Shake a Shortfill Every Time You Use It?

No.

You should shake the bottle thoroughly immediately after adding nicotine because you want the nic shot evenly distributed through the e-liquid.

Once it's properly mixed, there isn't generally a need to perform a pre-vape cocktail-shaker routine every time you refill your tank.

If a bottle has been sitting unused for a long time, giving it a quick shake does no harm.

Are Shortfills Better Value Than 10ml E-Liquids?

Historically, that has been one of their major attractions.

Large nicotine-free bottles are convenient for people who consume substantial quantities of vape juice, and the cost per millilitre has often been much lower than buying the equivalent volume as individual nicotine-containing 10ml bottles.

That calculation is about to change substantially.

How Will Vaping Products Duty Affect Shortfills?

From 1 October 2026, the UK is introducing Vaping Products Duty.

The duty is a flat £2.20 for every 10ml of vaping liquid. Crucially, it applies regardless of whether the e-liquid contains nicotine.

You can read the full details in HMRC's Vaping Products Duty guidance.

That nicotine-free part is what matters for shortfills.

Under the old system, the fact that a shortfill contained 0mg nicotine was one of the reasons it could be sold economically in a large bottle.

Under Vaping Products Duty, volume itself becomes expensive.

Why Shortfill Users Will Feel the Duty More

The tax is charged by volume rather than by nicotine strength.

That means a DTL vaper who consumes 100ml of low-nicotine vape juice is liable for ten times as much Vaping Products Duty by volume as someone buying a single 10ml bottle.

This is why the new duty is particularly relevant to shortfill and cloud-chasing users.

You may be using very little nicotine — or none at all — but you're using a lot of liquid.

HMRC has itself acknowledged that heavy vapers will bear the greatest burden from the new duty.

Should You Stock Up on Shortfills Before the Vape Duty?

If shortfills are already your normal e-liquid and you know which flavours you reliably use, buying a sensible supply before duty-paid stock becomes the norm could make financial sense.

There's little advantage in panic-buying flavours you've never tried or purchasing so much liquid that it'll sit in a cupboard for years.

But if you already know that you'll use several 100ml bottles over the coming months, the difference represented by £22 of duty per bottle is difficult to ignore.

There is one important nuance: prices don't necessarily have to change everywhere at midnight on 1 October.

HMRC allows retailers to continue selling qualifying unstamped stock that was produced or imported before 1 October 2026 until 31 March 2027. That means some pre-duty stock may remain available for a while after the tax officially begins.

Still, that stock is finite. As it is replaced with newly manufactured or imported duty-paid product, the economics of large-bottle e-liquid will change.

Will Shortfills Disappear After the Duty?

Probably not, but their role may change.

Shortfills solve more than a pricing problem. They're still a convenient way to buy large quantities of e-liquid, they're ideal for high-output vaping and they allow users to choose whether or how much nicotine to add.

Those advantages don't disappear in October.

What does disappear is much of the tax advantage associated with selling a large bottle at 0mg.

Manufacturers may respond with different bottle sizes, stronger concentrates, new promotions or other formats. Vapers may also become more conscious of e-liquid consumption when choosing hardware.

The shortfill market has already reinvented itself once. It wouldn't be surprising if the new duty causes it to evolve again.

Are Shortfills Still Worth Buying?

Right now, absolutely — especially if you're an RDL or DTL vaper who prefers low nicotine and gets through plenty of e-liquid.

They give you:

• large, convenient bottles;
• control over nicotine strength;
• excellent compatibility with high-output hardware;
• a huge choice of dessert, fruit, sweet and drink flavours; and
• the option to vape completely nicotine-free.

The forthcoming duty makes price a much bigger consideration, but it doesn't change what a shortfill actually does well.

You can browse the current shortfill e-liquid range to see the styles and bottle sizes available now.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is shortfill e-liquid?

Shortfill e-liquid is a larger bottle of nicotine-free vape juice with some empty space left in the bottle for nicotine shots. A common example is 50ml of e-liquid in a 60ml bottle.

What is shortfill vape juice?

Shortfill vape juice and shortfill e-liquid mean the same thing. Both describe nicotine-free e-liquid sold in a partially filled larger bottle so that nicotine can be added separately.

Why doesn't shortfill e-liquid contain nicotine?

UK regulations restrict nicotine-containing refill liquid to bottles no larger than 10ml. Selling the main e-liquid at 0mg allows manufacturers to offer larger bottles, while nicotine can be supplied separately in compliant 10ml shots.

How many nic shots do I add to a 60ml shortfill?

A standard 60ml shortfill bottle containing 50ml of nicotine-free e-liquid needs one 10ml 18mg/ml nic shot to produce 60ml at 3mg/ml.

How many nic shots do I add to a 120ml shortfill?

If the 120ml bottle contains 100ml of nicotine-free e-liquid, add two 10ml 18mg/ml nic shots to produce 120ml at 3mg/ml. Check the actual fill volume because not every 120ml bottle contains 100ml.

Can I vape a shortfill without adding nicotine?

Yes. Shortfills are already finished e-liquids and can be vaped at 0mg exactly as supplied.

Can I use half a nicotine shot?

Yes. You don't have to use a full shot. Just remember that the final nicotine strength depends on both the amount of nicotine used and the final liquid volume. Half a shot added to 50ml produces approximately 1.64mg/ml, not exactly 1.5mg/ml.

Do shortfills need to steep after adding nicotine?

Usually not. Shake the bottle thoroughly to distribute the nicotine. The shortfill itself is already a finished commercial e-liquid, so there's normally no requirement to leave it for days before use.

Are shortfills always high VG?

No, although many are. 70VG/30PG is particularly common because shortfills are popular with RDL and DTL vapers. Some larger bottles use 50/50 or other ratios, so check the product specification.

Are shortfills sweeter than nic salts?

Both categories can be extremely sweet. The difference is more about style. Shortfills traditionally have a strong presence in desserts, bakery flavours, sweets and rich fruit blends, while many modern nic salts follow the intense fruit, candy and cooling style popularised by prefilled vapes.

Do shortfills contain menthol?

Some do. Menthol, ice and chilled shortfills are widely available. However, cooling often tends to be more clearly signposted as part of the flavour than it is with some modern nic salts.

Why does my nic salt taste cold even though it doesn't say Ice?

Some modern nic salt recipes use a light cooling agent or menthol effect as part of the overall flavour even when cooling isn't mentioned in the product name. Read the flavour description if you specifically want to avoid a cool exhale.

What vape should I use with shortfill e-liquid?

Most high-VG shortfills are best suited to RDL and DTL hardware with lower-resistance coils and good liquid flow. Small MTL pods often work better with thinner 50/50 e-liquids.

Will Vaping Products Duty apply to nicotine-free shortfills?

Yes. From 1 October 2026, Vaping Products Duty applies to vaping liquid regardless of nicotine content at a flat rate of £2.20 per 10ml.

How much duty will there be on a 100ml shortfill?

At the announced rate, 100ml of vaping liquid carries £22 of Vaping Products Duty. Any separate nic shots are also vaping liquid and attract duty at the same £2.20-per-10ml rate.

Should I buy shortfills before October 2026?

If you already use shortfills regularly and know which flavours you like, buying a reasonable supply before duty-paid stock becomes widespread may save money. Keep in mind that qualifying pre-October stock can continue to be sold during HMRC's transition period, so availability and pricing won't necessarily change everywhere on the same day.

The Bottom Line

Shortfills began as an ingenious workaround to a very specific problem: UK vapers wanted large bottles of low-nicotine e-liquid, but nicotine-containing refill bottles couldn't legally be sold in those sizes.

The solution was simple. Leave the nicotine out, leave a little space in the bottle and let the user add a legal 10ml nic shot.

Nearly a decade later, the rest of the vape market has changed around them.

Nic salts and prefilled devices have pushed flavour trends towards intense fruit, candy and frequent cooling. Shortfills still tend to preserve more of the older high-VG enthusiast style, with large bottles of sweets, desserts, bakery flavours, drinks and fruit — often without cooling unless you've specifically chosen it.

Using one remains simple: add one 18mg shot to a standard 50ml/60ml shortfill or two to a standard 100ml/120ml shortfill for 3mg/ml, shake thoroughly and vape.

The more significant change arrives on 1 October 2026. Once Vaping Products Duty begins working its way through the supply chain, the sheer amount of liquid in a shortfill will make it one of the formats most exposed to the new tax.

If big bottles and low-nicotine DTL vaping are your thing, this is therefore a particularly good time to enjoy the current shortfill market — and, if you have dependable favourites, consider putting a sensible few extra bottles in the cupboard while current pricing lasts.