COVID-19 (coronavirus)
While the global burden of severe COVID-19 has declined due to widespread immunity from prior SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination, COVID-19 continues to cause hospitalizations and deaths, particularly among groups at highest risk of severe COVID-19: older adults, individuals with comorbidities, and immunocompromised people.
More than five years of accumulated COVID-19 vaccine safety data from clinical trials, post-marketing pharmacovigilance systems, and international regulatory reviews have shown a favourable safety profile for COVID-19 vaccines. Serious adverse events remain extremely rare relative to the more than 13 billion doses administered globally. Most reactions reported are mild or moderate and transient, resolving within a few days.
Real-world evidence on vaccine effectiveness from millions of vaccinated individuals confirms the ability of vaccines to reduce COVID-19-associated severe disease and death. Vaccines adapted to Omicron variant lineages continue to provide meaningful protection against COVID-19 severe outcomes. Routine periodic COVID-19 vaccination helps sustain this protection, as immunity declines relatively quickly within 6 months after vaccination or infection.
WHO’s recommendations for the use of COVID-19 vaccines are summarized below:
- WHO recommends that countries consider routine COVID-19 vaccination based on local COVID-19 epidemiology, population characteristics (including the prevalence of groups at higher risk of severe COVID-19 disease), access to COVID-19 vaccines, cost-effectiveness, acceptability, and programmatic feasibility.
- Countries should consider routine COVID-19 vaccination for those groups at highest risk of severe COVID-19 disease:
- oldest adults, with the age threshold determined by countries (suggested at 75 or 80 years of age);
- older adults, with the age threshold determined by countries (suggested at 60 years of age) for those with significant comorbidities or severe obesity, with the thresholds determined by countries (significant comorbidities include chronic cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, chronic respiratory disease, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease and neurological conditions);
- residents in care homes for older adults with the age threshold determined by countries (suggested at 60 years of age) and those in long-term care facilities; and
- moderately or severely immunocompromised individuals from 6 months of age, including those with active cancer or immunodeficiencies, transplant recipients and those being treated with immunosuppressives (also including people living with HIV with a CD4 T-cell count of <350 cells µl, or with evidence of an opportunistic infection, or not on HIV treatment, or with a detectable viral load).
For these groups, whether previously vaccinated (last dose more than 6 months ago) or unvaccinated, WHO recommends at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose per year – preferably two, about 6 months apart – due to the relatively rapid waning of immunity and limited protection beyond 6 months after the last dose.
Countries may consider routine COVID-19 vaccination of additional groups on the basis of the local context, cost-effectiveness and programmatic feasibility:
- older adults with the age threshold determined by countries (suggested at 60 years of age) without significant comorbidities or without severe obesity;
- adults (not included in the older adult category), adolescents and children with significant comorbidities or severe obesity;
- pregnant adolescents and adults (vaccination during each pregnancy aims to protect against maternal severe COVID-19, to prevent COVID-19-associated adverse pregnancy outcomes, and to protect the infant during the first months of life through maternal antibody transfer);
- health workers and other care providers, who have direct contact with persons at high risk of severe COVID-19, such as staff of public and private health and social care establishments and co-habitants or caregivers of persons who are at highest risk of severe COVID-19 disease;
For these groups, whether previously vaccinated (last dose more than 6 months ago) or unvaccinated, WHO recommends at least one dose per year.
- previously unvaccinated healthy children between 6 to 23 months of age only in countries with documented significant burden in this age group. Revaccination is not routinely recommended for this group.
Position paper
News on COVID-19 vaccines
COVID-19 vaccine delivery toolkit
Multimedia
COVID-19 vaccination status
Countries are expected to report COVID-19 vaccination data annually through the electronic WHO-UNICEF Joint Reporting Form (eJRF), in line with reporting for other vaccines included in national immunization programmes.
Data for the period January to December 2025 are available below:
The report below summarizes COVID-19 vaccination implementation, including national vaccination policies and coverage for the period January to December 2024.
WHO statement on composition of COVID-19 vaccines
While monovalent LP.8.1 is the latest WHO-recommended COVID-19 vaccine antigen in May 2026, vaccination should not be delayed in anticipation of access to LP.8.1 composition vaccines; previously recommended JN.1 lineage (JN.1 or KP.2) antigens remain suitable alternatives. Other antigens (e.g. XFG, NB.1.8.1) or other approaches that demonstrate broad and robust neutralizing antibody responses or efficacy against currently circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants could also be used.
COVID-19 vaccine prices
The Market Information for Access (MI4A) vaccine purchase database is the output of a peer platform leveraging data collected from countries worldwide. Information available through the dataset includes information on every vaccine that each country has purchased, including the minimum and maximum price per dose of COVID-19 vaccine based on 2024 country reported data.