Investment in JUUL	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Investments, Debt and Equity Securities [Abstract]
Investment in JUUL	Investment in JUUL On December 20, 2018, Altria entered into a stock purchase agreement with JUUL, the U.S. leader in e-vapor, pursuant to which Altria, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, purchased shares of JUUL’s non-voting Class C-1 Common Stock for an aggregate price of $12.8 billion, which will convert automatically to shares of voting Class C Common Stock upon antitrust clearance, and a security convertible into additional shares of Class C-1 Common Stock or Class C Common Stock, as applicable, for no additional payment upon settlement or exercise of certain JUUL convertible securities (the “JUUL Transaction”). As a result of the JUUL Transaction, Altria owns 35% of the issued and outstanding capital stock of JUUL. Upon Share Conversion, Altria will possess 35% of JUUL’s outstanding voting power, except to the extent that Altria’s percentage ownership has decreased, and have the right to designate one-third of the members of the JUUL Board of Directors, subject to proportionate downward adjustment if Altria’s percentage ownership falls below 30%. Altria received a broad preemptive right to purchase JUUL shares to maintain its ownership percentage and is subject to a standstill restriction under which it may not acquire additional JUUL shares above its 35% interest. Furthermore, Altria agreed not to sell or transfer any of its JUUL shares for six years from December 20, 2018. Altria and JUUL entered into a services agreement pursuant to which Altria has agreed to provide JUUL with certain commercial services, as requested by JUUL, for an initial term of six years. Among other things, Altria may provide services to JUUL with respect to logistics and distribution, access to retail shelf space, youth vaping prevention, cigarette pack inserts and onserts, regulatory matters and government affairs. Altria has also agreed to grant JUUL a non-exclusive, royalty-free perpetual, irrevocable, sublicensable license to Altria’s non-trademark licensable intellectual property rights in the e-vapor field, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in an intellectual property license agreement between the parties. Altria has agreed to non-competition obligations generally requiring that it participate in the e-vapor business only through JUUL as long as Altria is supplying JUUL services, which Altria is committed to doing for at least six years. At December 31, 2018, Altria accounts for its investment in JUUL as an investment in an equity security. Since the JUUL shares do not have a readily determinable fair value, Altria has elected to measure its investment in JUUL at its cost minus any impairment, if any, plus or minus changes resulting from observable price changes in orderly transactions for the identical or a similar investment of the same issuer. Upon Share Conversion, Altria expects to account for its investment in JUUL under the equity method of accounting. As disclosed in Note 9. Short-term Borrowings and Borrowing Arrangements, Altria financed the JUUL Transaction through a senior unsecured term loan agreement (the “Term Loan Agreement”). Costs incurred to effect the investment in JUUL are being recognized as expenses in Altria’s consolidated statement of earnings. For the year ended December 31, 2018, Altria incurred $85 million of pre-tax acquisition-related costs, consisting primarily of advisory fees, substantially all of which were recorded in marketing, administration and research costs.

Investment in JUUL

On December 20, 2018, Altria entered into a stock purchase agreement with JUUL, the U.S. leader in e-vapor, pursuant to which Altria, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, purchased shares of JUUL’s non-voting Class C-1 Common Stock for an aggregate price of $12.8 billion, which will convert automatically to shares of voting Class C Common Stock upon antitrust clearance, and a security convertible into additional shares of Class C-1 Common Stock or Class C Common Stock, as applicable, for no additional payment upon settlement or exercise of certain JUUL convertible securities (the “JUUL Transaction”). As a result of the JUUL Transaction, Altria owns 35% of the issued and outstanding capital stock of JUUL.

Upon Share Conversion, Altria will possess 35% of JUUL’s outstanding voting power, except to the extent that Altria’s percentage ownership has decreased, and have the right to designate one-third of the members of the JUUL Board of Directors, subject to proportionate downward adjustment if Altria’s percentage ownership falls below 30%.

Altria received a broad preemptive right to purchase JUUL shares to maintain its ownership percentage and is subject to a standstill restriction under which it may not acquire additional JUUL shares above its 35% interest. Furthermore, Altria agreed not to sell or transfer any of its JUUL shares for six years from December 20, 2018.

Altria and JUUL entered into a services agreement pursuant to which Altria has agreed to provide JUUL with certain commercial services, as requested by JUUL, for an initial term of six years. Among other things, Altria may provide services to JUUL with respect to logistics and distribution, access to retail shelf space, youth vaping prevention, cigarette pack inserts and onserts, regulatory matters and government affairs. Altria has also agreed to grant JUUL a non-exclusive, royalty-free perpetual, irrevocable, sublicensable license to Altria’s non-trademark licensable intellectual property rights in the e-vapor field, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in an intellectual property license agreement between the parties.

Altria has agreed to non-competition obligations generally requiring that it participate in the e-vapor business only through JUUL as long as Altria is supplying JUUL services, which Altria is committed to doing for at least six years.

At December 31, 2018, Altria accounts for its investment in JUUL as an investment in an equity security. Since the JUUL shares do not have a readily determinable fair value, Altria has elected to measure its investment in JUUL at its cost minus any impairment, if any, plus or minus changes resulting from observable price changes in orderly transactions for the identical or a similar investment of the same issuer. Upon Share Conversion, Altria expects to account for its investment in JUUL under the equity method of accounting.

As disclosed in Note 9. Short-term Borrowings and Borrowing Arrangements, Altria financed the JUUL Transaction through a senior unsecured term loan agreement (the “Term Loan Agreement”). Costs incurred to effect the investment in JUUL are being recognized as expenses in Altria’s consolidated statement of earnings. For the year ended December 31, 2018, Altria incurred $85 million of pre-tax acquisition-related costs, consisting primarily of advisory fees, substantially all of which were recorded in marketing, administration and research costs.