ubstance use is associated with a multitude of health and social effects. The results of the Global Burden of Disease Study clearly demonstrate that alcohol and tobacco use are among the main risk factors worldwide for premature mortality and life years lost due to disease and disability (1, 2). In 2015, every third person in Western Europe reported at least one episode of heavy drinking (≥ 60 g ethanol) in the preceding 30 days, every fifth person smoked tobacco daily, and 7% of respondents stated that they had consumed cannabis in the previous 12 months (3). Prevalence rates for the use of other illegal drugs such as amphetamines (0.6%), cocaine (1.1%), and opioids (0.4%) were much lower (3). The consumption of psychoactive substances is associated with an increased risk for substance disorders. The number of individuals with a substancerelated dependence per 100 000 people was estimated to be 881 for alcohol and 425 for cannabis in Western Europe in 2015. The number of deaths caused by substance use was reported to be 78 for tobacco, 19 for alcohol, and seven for illegal drugs per 100 000 people in the population (3). The Epidemiological Survey of Substance Abuse (Epidemiologischer Suchtsurvey, ESA) yields population-representative data on the prevalence of legal and illegal substance use, hazardous forms of use, as well as substance-related disorders according to the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Projected prevalence estimates for various indicators of use make it possible to quantify the current burden caused by substance use and substance-related disorders. Methods Study design and sample The 2018 ESA study population is made up of Germanspeaking individuals aged between 18 and 64 years living in private households in Germany. The sample was drawn in a two-stage selection process. In a first step, 254 municipalities (sample points) were randomly selected. In a second step, addresses were drawn from the respective population registers using a systematic random selection. Data was collected by means of written and online questionnaires or telephone interviews (mixed-method design). The adjusted sample included 9267 individuals (response rate = 41.6%). See Summary Background: Prevalence estimates of the use of tobacco, alcohol, illegal drugs, and psychoactive medications and of substance-related disorders enable an assessment of the effects of substance use on health and society. Methods: The data used for this study were derived from the 2018 Epidemiological Survey of Substance Abuse (Epidemiologischer Suchtsurvey, ESA). The sample of the German adult population comprised 9267 persons aged 18 to 64 (response rate, 42%). Population estimates were obtained by extrapolation to a total resident population of 51 544 494 people. Results: In the 30 days prior to the survey, 71.6% of the respondents (corresponding to 36.9 million persons in the population) had consumed alcohol, and 28.0% (14.4 million) had consumed tobacco. 4.0% reported having used e-cigarettes, and ...