Electric hookah: the future of hookah enjoyment?

Moritz Otten •Updated June 23, 2026 •9 min

A lot has happened in the hookah sector in recent years. While charcoal, HMD and bowl are a fixed part of every session for most hookah fans, a rethink is slowly but surely taking place.

Especially with regard to our highly technical world, it must be possible to make the enjoyment of a hookah easier, faster and also healthier, without losing the smoking behaviour of a classic hookah session.

This is exactly where electric hookahs come into play. They promise fewer pollutants, more comfort and less mess: modern smoking without embers, ash and heat management problems. We asked ourselves: what is behind the trend? Which systems are there and is it worth switching?

Why smoke an electric hookah?

For hookah smokers, classic hookah enjoyment involves some effort: you have to build a bowl, light charcoal and make sure it glows through properly on all sides.

Once the charcoal is ready, the bowl and tobacco have to be brought up to temperature, which, depending on the setup (aluminium foil, HMD, chimney attachment or a hybrid solution), means more or less effort. While smoking, the charcoal is regularly tapped to get rid of the ash, and handling glowing charcoal also demands a lot of attention: the charcoal moves from the burner into the charcoal basket and from the basket into the smokebox.

Depending on the heat, you put part of it back into the charcoal basket shortly afterwards or, as an interim solution, onto the charcoal plate. 26 mm, 27 mm or 28 mm charcoal? Depending on smokebox, charcoal size and tobacco, there are various constellations: two coals in the HMD, one tilted, a Mickey Mouse setup or just two 28 mm ones? You keep experimenting until you find a combination where the tobacco does not get burnt but the maximum of molasses or propylene glycol vaporises and all aromas are released, so your favourite tobacco tastes best.

Or in short: you are continuously busy fiddling with the setup so the hookah runs properly and the tobacco does not burn. That is a bit annoying, but usually gladly accepted for the enjoyment.

Another unpleasant point about classic hookah enjoyment is the carbon monoxide released by burning carbon. This gas, toxic to humans in high concentration, binds haemoglobin and displaces oxygen, which can lead to a lack of oxygen in the body. If, for example, you do not ventilate enough when lighting the charcoal, it can cause headaches, nausea and vomiting. At particularly high concentrations, disorientation, fainting and, in extreme cases, even death can result. So always make sure to ventilate well when you fire up charcoal, and get fresh air especially when you feel dizzy or unwell.

Sure, discussing “healthy" and “unhealthy" on topics like smoking is a bit silly, but if there are alternatives to get the desired tobacco enjoyment in a less harmful, safer and more efficient way, why hold on to the traditional form? Electric hookahs do completely without charcoal. Instead, the hookah tobacco is heated by electricity. That brings advantages like less fire hazard, fewer pollutants, much less mess and often more constant, more pleasant smoking behaviour.

E-shisha vs. electric hookah: what is the difference?

Before we take a deep dive into the topic, it is important to briefly define what we mean by an electric hookah. Because an electric hookah is not a so-called “e-shisha". E-shishas and electronic or electric hookahs are two completely different things. That is not because there are different electric systems, but because in recent years the term e-shisha has established itself mainly as a synonym for vapes.

The term e-shisha therefore includes every kind of vape, from disposable e-cigarettes through open pod systems with a vaporiser in the cartridge to vape systems you place on the bowl adapter of a hookah to vaporise e-liquids. The disposable variant will probably lose relevance sooner or later due to its low sustainability, while refillable systems are likely to move more into focus.

These e-shishas have nothing to do with the enjoyment of a real hookah but are colloquially still called e-shisha by many. That is why we prefer the terms electro-hookah, electronic hookah or electric hookah for electric hookah systems, even though e-shisha would also be linguistically obvious.

Real electronic hookahs are more or less closed systems in which real hookah tobacco is heated electrically. The smoke produced by drying the tobacco and vaporising the molasses differs considerably from the vapour of a liquid. Since these systems are larger and require accessories like a mouthpiece, hoses and a large battery, classic e-shishas appeal more to users who would otherwise reach for a tobacco cigarette or vape. Electric hookahs, on the other hand, are aimed more at people who want to stay closer to a classic hookah in terms of smoking behaviour and function.

Is an e-shisha less harmful than an electric hookah?

Even if it may seem obvious: there are no or too few studies to answer this question across the board. Some liquids have compositions that do not occur in classic smoking. The ingredients they contain have therefore not been sufficiently investigated regarding what they do to the lungs when vaporised. How nicotine behaves in different nicotine strengths, on the other hand, is much better researched and known.

The problem with e-shishas

Both the flavours and the design of vapes are very attractive, especially for young people. They often seem much more accessible than classic tobacco cigarettes. That is exactly why youth protection is particularly important on this topic. Young people must be protected from nicotine addiction and the risks of smoking until they are of legal age.

Which electric systems are there?

When people talk about “electric hookahs", that is somewhat misleading, because instead of meaning a specific device, it is an umbrella term for several different electric systems. Depending on structure and function, we currently distinguish three main categories.

1. Electric hookahs (complete systems)

These systems work independently and replace the complete hookah in one practical device. You need no smoke column, no glass, no bowl, no HMD, because the whole system is a closed circuit. Popular models in this category are, for example:

• Ooka: a complete system with pre-filled pods, similar to Nespresso with coffee. Extremely simple to handle but also very limited in terms of tobacco choice and flexibility. The smoking behaviour of an Ooka is much weaker than that of a normal hookah.
• Ensō: also a complete system, but with the advantage that you can fill the pods yourself. That makes it much more versatile. The Ensō offers better smoking behaviour than an Ooka but is still quite a bit weaker than an ordinary hookah.
• Gookah: comes from a different manufacturer than the Ooka but is essentially a further-developed version of it, with freely fillable pods and smoking behaviour similar to the Ensō. With the Gookah too, the smoking behaviour is not nearly the same as with ordinary hookah setups.

2. e-HMD (electric heat controller)

For everyone who wants to keep most of their classic setup, there is a minimally invasive solution: electric heat management devices, i.e. HMDs, that replace only the charcoal, the charcoal burner and the HMD. The best representative of this genre is the Nevo. You set the device on a prepared clay bowl, plug it into the socket and start the session. The tobacco is heated evenly, entirely without glowing charcoal.

The biggest drawback: the Nevo is corded. That means you always need a socket nearby when you want to smoke. You also have to be careful not to accidentally pull on the cable or walk into it. For home that may be okay, but on the go this system is very impractical. The basic idea of the Nevo is very good in our opinion, but the concept and the device are not yet fully developed.

3. e-hookah bowl and e-HMD (hybrid systems)

The third and newest variant combines an e-HMD with an e-bowl in a single device. Currently only the XKAH Pro falls into this category, which we, as one of two official importers, also offer in our shop. The XKAH Pro is the first electric hookah system that has convinced us so far, because it combines the best of all worlds.

The XKAH Pro replaces bowl, HMD, charcoal and burner. You simply fill the included pods with tobacco, put them in the device and place the whole thing like a normal bowl on your hookah. As soon as you start the device, the tobacco is heated electrically, entirely without a burner and without waiting for the charcoal. After a few minutes you have dense, flavourful smoke, and that consistently until the end of the session.

Our favourite: the XKAH Pro

We deliberately decided to offer only the XKAH Pro as an electric solution in our shop, and there are many reasons for that. The XKAH Pro is cordless, easy to use and technically well thought out. Temperature and session duration can be set individually, the battery is replaceable and cleaning works without much effort. The device was not for nothing the highlight of the Shisha Messe 2025 for many. Over two years of development went into it, and you notice that with every draw. For us the XKAH Pro is currently the most mature system on the market. It makes hookah smoking not only more straightforward but also brings that certain extra of comfort and control that many have wished for.

XKAH Pro Smokebox To the product

Advantages of electric hookahs at a glance

That was quite a lot at once. Let us briefly summarise the most important pluses again:

• Fewer pollutants: no carbon monoxide, no open fire and no fire hazard.
• No charcoal chaos: no burner, no HMD, no handling of embers and ash.
• Quick start: no long preheating of the charcoal, the tobacco is heated directly.
• Constant flavour: even heat, no charring of the tobacco.
• Easy cleaning: less ash and much less dirt, many parts can also go in the dishwasher.
• Cheaper in the long run: no charcoal and no power-hungry burner.
• Travel-friendly: no problems taking it on a plane and super portable, as charcoal tongs, charcoal burner and charcoal are no longer needed and less space is required in the suitcase.

Conclusion: is switching worth it?

Whether switching is worth it depends on what you set the costs in relation to. If you take pure monetary value, electric systems need a lot of time before they pay off. But if you calculate the costs in terms of lifetime, for example, the purchase is worthwhile in any case. Electric systems cause fewer pollutants, which should have a positive effect on health. On the other hand, you also do not have to put as much of your lifetime into preparing and using charcoal, because the devices are easy to handle and mostly very easy to clean.

If you can do without the charcoal stress, have had enough of waiting for the charcoal to be ready, and do not enjoy the sometimes lengthy cleaning of your setup, then taking a look at the electric alternatives is definitely worth it. The XKAH Pro in particular shows how well the whole thing works by now. Of course it is a change at first. But for many it is exactly the upgrade they were actually always looking for, they just did not know they wanted it. A new era of hookah enjoyment awaits you: more modern, cleaner, safer and yet as enjoyable as ever.

Author

Moritz Otten

Moritz is the founder of Moze and the brains behind all Moze products.

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