Background: Tobacco use remains a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality worldwide, with most smokers initiating the habit during adolescence. However, recent evidence on smoking prevalence and its predictors among adolescents in North-Central Nigeria is limited. Aim: To determine the lifetime prevalence and predictors of smoking among senior secondary school students in public schools in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A school-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 390 senior secondary school students selected through a multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire and analysed using SPSS version 25. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data, while Chi-square tests and multivariable logistic regression identified factors associated with lifetime smoking. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05. Results: The lifetime prevalence of smoking was 43.4%, while 17.0% of respondents were current smokers. Approximately one-fifth (21.6%) initiated smoking at or before 13 years of age. Although most respondents demonstrated good knowledge of the harmful effects of smoking and generally negative attitudes towards tobacco use, smoking remained common. Having close friends who smoked was the strongest predictor of lifetime smoking (AOR=3.615; 95% CI: 2.273–5.749; p<0.001), while rural residence independently increased the likelihood of smoking (AOR=1.930; 95% CI: 1.143–3.257; p=0.014). Conclusion: Lifetime smoking among senior secondary school students in Makurdi is high despite good awareness of tobacco-related harms. Comprehensive school-based tobacco prevention programmes, peer-led interventions, and strengthened tobacco control measures, particularly in rural communities, are needed to prevent early smoking initiation among adolescents.