A new report from the National Advisory Committee on Drugs has found that 3% of people in the Republic have used cocaine at some point in their life.
It says cocaine users in Ireland are young, male and at risk of regular use after only one year.
The report says the average age for first use is 20 for men and 21 for women, and that twice as many men as women say they used the drug at least once in their lives.
The report predicts an increase in the number of young people seeking treatment for cocaine.
Its use is high in areas around Dublin, making it primarily an urban problem.
Over three quarters of recent users obtained cocaine from someone known to them - contradicting the popular view of the dealer as someone completely unknown to the user.
The main reason why people quit using cocaine was related to cost.
The report also compares cocaine use in Northern Ireland and says that lifetime use in the Republic is nearly double that of Northern Ireland.
More recent users in the Republic than in Northern Ireland found it easier to obtain cocaine.
