Background: Smoking is common among nursing students worldwide, but the reported prevalence is inconsistent across epidemiological studies. This is a meta-analysis of the prevalence of smoking in nursing students worldwide. Design: Meta-analysis of observational studies. Sample: A total of 46 studies were included in this meta-analysis. Method: Electronic databases (PubMed, Medline, PsycINFO, EMBASE and Web of science) were independently and systematically searched by two investigators from their commencement date up to 12 May 2018. Studies that reported the smoking rate of nursing students were included and analyzed using random-effects model. Results: The pooled prevalence of current smoking was 26.6% (95% CI: 22.9–30.4%), while pooled prevalence of previous smoking was 15.5% (95% CI: 11.8–19.3%). Subgroup analyses showed that smoking rate was higher in male compared with female students (39% vs 25.2%, P <.001), while survey time, sample size, age, study design and academic year did not moderate the smoking rate (all P >.05). Conclusion: This meta-analysis confirmed that smoking is common in nursing students. Considering the negative impact of smoking on health, appropriate smoking cessation measures for nursing students should be developed.