Eggs last 3–5 weeks in the refrigerator and only 2 hours out of the fridge.
Saved on this device. Pip counts the days for you in My fridge →
Storage times side by side
Each bar marks the longest recommended storage time for that spot, on a scale that spans 1 hour up to 2 years.
- 1Eat within a few days
- 2Lasts a week or two
- 3Lasts for months
- 4Lasts a very long time
Rated on whichever is longer: its fridge or pantry time.
Roughly 11–25 days left in the fridge.
Roughly 7–21 days left in the fridge.
Still within the safe window, but only just. Eat it today or move it to the freezer now.
Beyond the recommended fridge time. Throw it away, however normal it looks or smells.
Beyond the recommended fridge time. Throw it away, however normal it looks or smells.
Days count from when it was bought, opened or cooked, assuming a fridge set to 4 °C (40 °F) or below.
Test the timing on your eggs
Well within the 2-hour limit. Get them into the fridge right away, spread out in a shallow dish so they chill fast.
OK at ordinary room temperature. If it is hotter than 32°C (90°F), though, the limit shrinks to just 1 hour, so get them into the fridge at once.
The USDA cut-off is two hours. If the room was warm, or you can't say for certain how long it has been, throw them out.
This is over the 2-hour limit, and bacteria could have grown, or made toxins that a round of reheating won't destroy.
Eggs left out overnight have sat for hours on end between 4°C and 60°C (40–140°F), the danger zone. Appearance is no guide here: it isn't safe to eat.
Anything warmer than 4°C (40°F) counts as room temperature. When it's hotter than 32°C (90°F), the limit drops to 1 hour.
How long eggs keeps with each storage method
| Storage | How long | Temp | Packaging | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Counter / pantry | 2 hours | 68–72°F | Airtight | only 1 hour above 90°F |
| Refrigerator | 3–5 weeks | ≤ 40°F / 4°C | Airtight | 40°F (4°C) or colder |
| Freezer | Not recommended | 0°F / -18°C | Wrapped or freezer bag | hurts texture or safety |
Getting to know eggs
Eggs sit in the dairy & eggs section of our food guide. The USDA FoodKeeper database files them under the name “Eggs (in shell)”. Going by USDA FoodKeeper, they last 3–5 weeks in the fridge. Freezing is not advised. As with any perishable food, they shouldn't spend more than 2 hours at room temperature. Best storage spot: choose a middle shelf over the door, which warms up each time someone opens it.
Thanks to the shell and the thin membranes just inside it, eggs last for weeks in the fridge. Eggs sold in the US are washed before they reach stores, a step that strips off the shell's natural protective coating, so they have to stay refrigerated. Once an egg is cracked, separated or cooked, its storage time shrinks sharply.
The best place for eggs
Choose a middle shelf over the door, which warms up each time someone opens it.
Your eggs storage questions
How long do eggs last in the fridge?
3–5 weeks when held at 4°C (40°F) or below. Start counting on the day it was bought, opened or cooked.
How long do eggs last in the freezer?
Not recommended. FoodKeeper advises against freezing eggs: the texture falls apart, or the thawed result can't be trusted to be safe.
How long do eggs last at room temperature?
2 hours at most, or 1 hour if the air is above 32°C (90°F). Throw out perishable food that has been out longer than that.
How long is eggs good after the expiration date?
With perishable eggs, time in storage counts for more than whatever the label says. Once it has spent longer than 3–5 weeks in the fridge, throw it out — even if the printed date hasn't arrived yet.
How do you know if eggs are bad?
A sulfur smell the moment the shell cracks is unmistakable — throw that egg away. Shells that are cracked, or that feel slimy or powdery. Whites or yolks with a pink, green or iridescent look.
How long can eggs sit out?
At room temperature the limit is 2 hours, dropping to 1 hour when the temperature tops 32°C (90°F). A whole night out is never safe.
How to spot spoiled eggs
Odor
A sulfur smell the moment the shell cracks is unmistakable — throw that egg away.
Shell
Shells that are cracked, or that feel slimy or powdery.
Inside
Whites or yolks with a pink, green or iridescent look.
Float test
This only tells you age. An egg that floats is older, so give it a sniff before you decide.
No boxes ticked? That's encouraging. Even so, confirm how long it has been stored, because the germs behind food poisoning can't be seen with the naked eye.
Even one of these means it has spoiled. Toss it, and never taste it to find out.
What makes eggs spoil
Salmonella is the key safety concern with eggs, and it can lurk inside an egg with a perfectly ordinary appearance. As they age, eggs gradually give up water and carbon dioxide through the porous shell, so the white turns runny and the yolk sits flatter. An egg that has truly gone bad gives off a sulfur smell as bacteria break down its proteins.
Mistakes people make storing eggs
- Storing the carton in the door, where temperatures go up and down.
- Washing eggs before putting them away.
- Letting cold eggs sit out longer than two hours: condensation on a cold egg can help bacteria get through the shell.
- Freezing whole eggs in their shells, which makes the shells split.
Can you freeze eggs?
Eggs left out overnight
Throw out refrigerated eggs that have been sitting out longer than 2 hours. A chilled egg left at room temperature can sweat, and that moisture helps bacteria get through the shell. Eggs sold in the US are washed, so they need to stay in the fridge.
Bacteria grow at their fastest in the 4 °C to 60 °C (40–140 °F) range.
Keeping eggs in good shape
- Leave eggs in the carton and set it on an interior shelf rather than in the door.
- Hold them at 40°F (4°C) or colder, and skip washing them before they go in.
- Get hard-boiled eggs into the fridge no more than 2 hours after cooking.
What the dates on eggs packaging mean
Best-by vs. sell-by
Counting from the purchase date, FoodKeeper allows unopened eggs 3–5 weeks in the refrigerator. Labels such as "best-by" and "sell-by" are about peak quality and how stores rotate stock, not about safety — infant formula is the one product whose use-by date federal law requires.
Past the printed date
With perishable eggs, time in storage counts for more than whatever the label says. Once it has spent longer than 3–5 weeks in the fridge, throw it out — even if the printed date hasn't arrived yet.
Choosing good eggs at the store
- Open the carton before you buy and make sure none of the eggs are cracked or dirty.
- Only buy eggs that are sold from a refrigerated case.
- Leave them in the carton, which shields them and keeps the pack date in view.
Eggs: ways to finish them in time
- Make a batch of hard-boiled eggs; they keep for a week in the fridge.
- Beat any extras together and freeze them for baking.
- Use them up in quiches, frittatas, custards and baked goods.
Eggs compared with similar foods
- Eggs 3–5 weeks
- Hard-boiled eggs 1 week
- Eggnog 3–5 days
- Deviled eggs 3–4 days
- Egg dishes 3–4 days
- Egg whites 2–4 days
- Egg yolks 2–4 days
Drawn on the timeline's scale, which runs from 1 hour to 2 years.
Pip can look it up in seconds: find out when leftovers expire and whether something that sat out is still safe to eat.
Eggs myths: fact or fiction?
- You got it!Not this time.
False. Food-poisoning bacteria seldom alter how food smells. Keep to the 3–5 weeks window and discard anything older.
- You got it!Not this time.
False. The freezer puts bacteria on hold rather than killing them. They start up again as the food warms, so let it thaw in the fridge, then cook or reheat it all the way through.
- You got it!Not this time.
False. FoodKeeper advises against freezing eggs: the texture falls apart, or the thawed result can't be trusted to be safe.
- You got it!Not this time.
False. Each time the fridge is opened, the door heats up. Choose a middle shelf over the door, which warms up each time someone opens it.
- You got it!Not this time.
False. Certain bacteria produce toxins that heat cannot destroy. Reheating kills the bacteria themselves but leaves those toxins behind, so anything left out longer than 2 hours belongs in the trash.
Foods like eggs
Every eggs item → Every freezing answer → Leftover date calculator →Freezer storage calculator →Counter-time checker →