Different COVID-19 Vaccines
and Vaccine Safety

Authorized COVID-19 Vaccines

Three COVID-19 vaccines are authorized or approved for use in the United States to prevent COVID-19:

• Comirnaty/Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine
• Recommended for people aged 6 months and older
• Moderna COVID-19 vaccine
• Recommended for people aged 6 months and older
• Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine
• Available for people aged 18 years and older

Side Effects

Side effects usually start within a day or two of getting the vaccine. They should go away in a few days. The most common side effects include:

At injection site:

• Pain
• Swelling
• Redness

Throughout body:

• Chills
• Tiredness
• Headache

Vaccine Safety

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Emergency Use Authorizations (EUA) for COVID-19 vaccines which have been shown to be safe and effective.

Emergency Use Authorizations

• FDA - Pfizer EUA
• FDA – Moderna EUA
• FDA – Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) EUAOpens In A New Window

Vaccine Safety Monitoring

After a vaccine is authorized for use, many vaccine safety monitoring systems watch for possible side effects. This monitoring can pick up on adverse events that may not have been seen in clinical trials. If an unexpected adverse event is seen, experts study it further to assess whether it is a true safety concern. Experts then decide whether changes are needed in U.S. vaccine recommendations. This monitoring is critical to help ensure that the benefits continue to outweigh the risks for people who receive vaccines.

V-safe

CDC has a new smartphone-based, after-vaccination health checker for people who receive COVID-19 vaccines called V-safe. V-safe uses text messaging and web surveys from CDC to check in with vaccine recipients following COVID-19 vaccination. V-safe also provides second vaccine dose reminders if needed, and telephone follow up to anyone who reports medically significant adverse events.

Learn more about COVID-19 vaccine safety from the CDC.

Date updated: 6/21/2022