How to Rehydrate Cigars: 2025 Edition

Have you suffered from a bad smoking experience lately? The reason might be poor humidification. Thankfully, we’re here to explain how you can rehydrate dried-out cigars. Let’s break it down. 

Do Cigars Go Bad?

Yes. Cigars are made almost entirely from tobacco leaves. And tobacco leaves — like any other kind of leaves — will eventually crack and break. The only way to prevent cigars from deteriorating over time is to house them in a controlled environment (near 70 degrees and 70% humidity), i.e., in a humidor. 

In a perfect world, you’d never let a cigar go bad in the first place. So, before you make another big cigar purchase, check out our guide to achieving perfect cigar humidity. Stored in a well-maintained humidor, a cigar can stay in good smoking condition for years or even decades. 

How to Tell if a Cigar is Dry?

If you know that a cigar has been left out of a humidor for more than a few days, then odds are it’s not in great smoking condition. Other tell-tale signs that a cigar has become too dry include:

• It is rock-hard to the touch with no give. 

• The wrapper is not oily and smooth, but coarse and dry. 

• The flavor has gone stale. 

• The cigar burns too hot and too fast.

A cigar with a seriously cracked wrapper is probably beyond saving. You may be able to fix a cracked wrapper (if the tear is small) with a substance like pectin (a tasteless, odorless sticky substance), but re-humidifying a cigar with a torn wrapper on its own won’t work.

How to Rehydrate Cigars

Can you rehydrate a cigar? Yes. Again, it’s not ideal to let your cigars go dry in the first place, so we recommend storing your cigars in a quality humidor at all times. On the plus side, though, you can rehydrate cigars without a humidor. 

Here’s what you need to do:

• Step #1: Store your dried-out cigars in a container separate from your other cigars. 

• Step #2: Add a 69-72% humidity packet to your container. 

• Step #3: Wait around a month for the cigars to regain humidity. 

Remember to be patient. Cigars lose humidification quickly but gain it back slowly. It may take closer to a couple of months to achieve proper humidity if a cigar has dried out completely.

Tips to Rehydrate Cigars

Some notes you’ll want to keep in mind when rejuvenating cigars include:

• Store your dried-out cigars in Ziploc bags or Air tight Tupperdors containers because they — and this is important — provide an air-tight seal. Without that air-tight seal, you’re asking for trouble. 

• We’re fans of Boveda packs for humidification purposes here at Cigar World. (RELATED: How to Use Boveda Packs.)

• Store dried-out cigars separately from cigars that are in good condition. 

• Don’t mix humidification packs of different humidity levels in the same container.

Can You Rehydrate Cigars Gradually?

Sure! While the easiest way to rehydrate cigars is to directly place them in a sealed container with a 69-72% humidity pack, you can slowly bring cigars up to higher humidity levels if they have particularly fragile wrappers. 

How to Tell When Your Cigars Are Rehydrated

Rehydrated cigars that are in ready-to-smoke condition will feel a little spongier to the touch, burn evenly and smoothly, and produce a wide range of dynamic tasting notes. Note that the more dehydrated a cigar has become, the less likely it is to fully recover its original flavor profile. 

How NOT to Rehydrate Cigars

You can’t believe everything you read on the internet. Don’t microwave your cigars, don’t dunk them in water, and don’t sponge them down. (Pro Tip: Don’t use tap water to humidify cigars. Doing this can cause mold.) There is no sure-fire way to rehydrate cigars quickly. Simply put, patience is required to rehydrate cigars. 

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