What are CDC’s 2025–26 season COVID-19 vaccination recommendations for people age 6 months and older?

CDC recommends individual decision-making (also known as shared clinical decision-making) for COVID-19 vaccination of all people age 6 months and older. Among people age 6 months through 64 years, ACIP emphasizes that the risk-benefit of vaccination is most favorable for individuals who are at an increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease and lowest for individuals who are not at an increased risk. Details of the vaccination schedule are available here: www.cdc.gov/covid/hcp/vaccine-considerations/routine-guidance.html.

Of note, among previously unvaccinated people who are not moderately or severely immunocompromised, an initial vaccination series is recommended only for young children age 6 through 23 months. All others younger than age 65 years are recommended to receive a single dose of an age-appropriate 2025–2026 formula COVID-19 vaccine. People age 65 years and older are recommended to receive a second 2025–2026 formula COVID-19 vaccine dose 6 months later (minimum interval 2 months if using Comirnaty, Spikevax, or Nuvaxovid; minimum interval 3 months if using mNexspike).

Major U.S. professional medical societies have issued their own recommendations for the 2025–26 COVID-19 season that differ from CDC, primarily in their stronger, routine recommendations for vaccination of people at risk of severe COVID-19 illness:

• American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) for children: https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/156/5/e2025073924/203222/Recommendations-for-COVID-19-Vaccines-in-Infants
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) for healthy adults and elderly people: www.aafp.org/family-physician/patient-care/public-health-emergencies/recent-outbreaks/covid-19/covid-19-vaccine.html
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) for pregnancy: www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-advisory/articles/2020/12/covid-19-vaccination-considerations-for-obstetric-gynecologic-care
• Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) for immunocompromised people and their close contacts: www.idsociety.org/Seasonal-RTI-Vaccinations-in-Immunocompromised-Patients/