OBJECTIVES: To establish the profile of the demand for interventions to quit smoking among smokers in Mexico, estimate the maximum willingness to pay (WTP) for an effective smoking cessation treatment and to identify smokers' background, environmental, demographic, and socioeconomic factors associated with this valuation. METHODS: From the Global Adult Tobacco Survey in Mexico 2009, there was selected the sample of analysis constituted by 1626 current smokers. A cross-sectional study was performed. A statistical association and descriptive analysis were conducted to describe smokers and their WTP using tobacco-related background information, environmental, socioeconomic and demographic variables. RESULTS: 82.2 % of the current smokers who did not want to quit were men, whereas between those who wanted to quit, 74.9 % were men. In the latter group, 49.8 % of smokers had been consuming tobacco with a daily frequency, for more than 16 years, 57 % had made cessation attempts in the past, and around 10% knew about the existence of centers to help quit smoking. The WTP for an effective cessation method was on average $2708 Mexican pesos. An increase was identified in the WTP as the educational level is increased using as reference to the smokers without formal education. The individuals of the quintiles of socioeconomic status (SES) 4 and 5 have a major WTP that the individuals of the quintile 1. CONCLUSIONS: The evidence showed in the present study, will inform and support policymakers in the design and implementation of smoking cessation interventions. The study documents the need that these interventions incorporate components in correspondence with the smokers' profiles identified to improve the effectiveness of the interventions to quit smoking, among Mexican smokers.