On average, a mild to moderate COVID-19 infection lasts for 10 days. However, how quickly you bounce back from a COVID-19 infection depends on various factors, including your health before the infection, any underlying conditions you may have, and which variant of the virus you have contracted.
This article will cover how long you can expect to have symptoms, pass your infection to others, and fully recover from the newest variants that cause COVID-19 infection.
The average recovery time of COVID-19 infections can vary based on what you consider “recovered.” Some people never develop any symptoms with a COVID-19 infection, some have mild infections, and others go on to fight severe illness.
People with a mild to moderate COVID-19 infection have symptoms like:
- Cough
- Diarrhea
- Fever
- Diminished the sense of smell
- Muscle aches
- Nausea or vomiting
- Sore throat
Symptoms like shortness of breath don’t usually occur with mild to moderate COVID-19, and blood oxygen levels don’t typically fall below normal limits.
Mild to moderate illness from COVID-19 usually lasts an average of 10 days. For some people, symptoms fade in a matter of days; for others, it takes weeks.
Even mild COVID-19 cases can progress to long COVID or post-COVID syndrome, in which ongoing symptoms remain long after the initial infection. A healthcare provider may diagnose you with long COVID if you’ve had unresolved symptoms for more than one month.
According to one report, 10% to 30% of people infected with asymptomatic, mild, or moderate infections develop long COVID.
Generally, the incubation period between your initial exposure to the virus and when you begin to notice symptoms is between two and five days. You can be infectious to others during this time, especially in the two days before your symptoms start. You can also pass a COVID-19 infection to others if you have a COVID-19 infection but never develop symptoms.
Beyond the incubation period, the duration of your symptoms and overall illness varies, but how long your incubation period lasts could be linked to how long you are sick and can pass the illness to others.
People vaccinated against COVID-19 or those who have natural immunity (having acquired the disease through infection) can still be infected with COVID-19 again.
The severity and duration of the repeated illness depends on what strain you were vaccinated against, what strain is causing your current infection, and how much time has passed since your most recent COVID-19 infection and/or immunization.
One study suggests that infections in people vaccinated against COVID-19 can last as little as two days, and these infections are usually less severe compared to those in people who are not immunized against COVID-19.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all Americans over age 12 have at least one dose of the updated COVID-19 vaccine, released in September 2023, regardless of prior infection or vaccination status.
